


Angel Witch

by Aubrie1234



Category: Brütal Legend
Genre: AU, Behind the Scenes, Eddie knows he's half-demon, Eddie the arachnephobe, Everyone's getting more of a backstory, F/M, Fluff-Humor-Angst, Gen, M/M, More tags to be added, Succoria has lots of friends she doesn't know what to do with, Things change but stay the same kinda?, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:53:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 33,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23601865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aubrie1234/pseuds/Aubrie1234
Summary: Succoria survived. She had been there to help raise Eddie with Riggnarok and got to watch him grow up. She may not have been the powerful demon she once was, but she was powerful enough. And there was no way time travel was going to stop her from rescuing her son. Doviculus had better watch out.Eddie loved his mother, he really did, but she was a little overprotective sometimes. Her stories were always the best, though. But when he finds himself in the Age of Metal, he realizes her stories weren't just stories. Hopefully he doesn't get himself killed while he tries to find out whether he wants to stay in this wonderful land or find a way home to his mother.And Ironheade is just caught in the middle of this mess.
Relationships: Ophelia/Eddie Riggs
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	1. Protecting You Is All I Can Do

**Author's Note:**

> I've been in love with Brütal Legend for the past few years and always wanted to make something in its universe and so this was conceived. Basically, what if Succoria had survived and had helped raise Eddie with Riggnarok? What if Eddie had known he was half-demon the whole time and tried to use that to help? This AU is going to follow the Brütal Legend storyline before branching off later on and for the most part, there won't be many changes, I guess. And I'm sorry if this chapter is short but I wasn't sure what else to add to it. And if there's OOCness, blame me. I'll try to fix it.
> 
> Notes: 
> 
> In the modern age, Succoria goes by Susan Riggs while Riggnarok was Roger Riggs. This won't go on for long, though, just a little clarification.
> 
> Angel Witch is one of the songs you can play in Brütal Legend and I think it really fits Succoria well, which is why its the story title.

“Eddie, _how_ can you stand to be a roadie to those fools? They have no taste in music!”

“I know, Ma, but they hired me.” Eddie rubbed his face, phone to his ear, “It pays good, even if I don’t like their music. It’s the closest you can get to Heavy Metal nowadays.”

“You could have gone to KISS.” she protested, “They could always use a good roadie while they’re still out and about. Eventually they’ll come to the point that they’ll be touring while so old they’re one foot in the grave.”

“Mom.” Eddie said, knowing that if he didn’t stop her soon she’d go on a tirade, “After this is all over, you know I’m coming home, right? This is the last night of the tour and then, once all the stuff is packed away and dealt with, I’ll be taking the next flight home to see you.”

“As soon as you walk in the door, Motörhead will be waiting for you.”

“Please tell me you’re not gonna play _We Are the Road Crew_. Again.”

“But it fits!” said his mom, “If a little too well sometimes.”

“Ma, I’ll be home soon. Do you want me to call you as soon as the concert is over?”

“If you would.” Eddie smiled. For all her thoughts on Metal and their favorite bands, trying to get his mind off things, his mother was always worrying about him when he was at his job.

“I’ll be fine. I’ve been doing this for _years_. I’m the best in the business.” Eddie said, “Just trust me when I say that this concert’ll be fine.”

“I know you always say that, but...” She sighed, “Trying to protect you is all I can think about now.” She had always been the protective sort, especially when he had been younger, but it had ebbed away as time passed. It was only after the recent passing of his father that Eddie’s mom had become overly protective again. He supposed he couldn’t blame her. She had no family outside of him, not that he knew of, and neither did his father for that matter. She was only trying to hold on to the only thing she had left.

“I know.” Eddie glanced away from the phone to the other side of the room and winced, “KB are on tonight and I still have to fix one of the guitars before the show, so I’ve gotta go. As soon as it’s over, I’ll call you.”

“Promise?”

“Promise. Love you.”

“I love you too, Eddie.” Once it ended, Eddie put the landline back on its roost on the wall. He’d never bought into portable phones and used the landlines whenever possible. He supposed it came with the feeling of being born in the wrong time. As it was, he cracked his knuckles and made his way over to the guitar, cradling it gently. Time to fix Clementine again for the third night in a row. He wanted to kill Kabbage Boy so badly but he wasn’t sure anyone else would approve. Except his mother, of course. And the rest of the crew who worked with the dirtbags. So maybe he could do it after all and nobody would say a word. But no, he was a roadie, and the roadie’s job was to fix things and stay out of the spotlight. That was something he never wanted to change, no matter how much his mother insisted otherwise. Even if it included watching his guitar get beat-up every night.

* * *

When he woke up on the altar, he had a strange sense of being at home. He wasn’t in bed, he was lying on a stone slab after fucking _dying_ trying to save one of those assholes with deadly hooded figures around him, but he still felt at home. It was strange.

 _I should be dead. Why am I not dead?_ Eddie thought, sitting up. His head pounded in response and he rubbed it, trying to make it ebb away. Likely an after-effect of dying or something. But where the hell was he? The hooded guys were murmuring something, crouched around an actual axe that looked distinctly familiar for some reason. Maybe they knew? But he was in the middle of a stone temple and there was dried blood on the floor, so he clearly _was not_ in Kansas anymore, thank you very much.

“The day has finally come.” one of the hooded guys was saying, “For us to serve our master.” Eddie raised an eyebrow. He couldn’t be their master, right? He climbed off the altar. It took a few moments for him to get his balance back but his strength was quickly returning.

“Uh, hey, I’m not your master.” Eddie said. He was about to add more when the hooded figures stood up and he could see literal jaw bones in place of where there should be flesh.

“No you are _not_.” hissed the skull guy. They hefted their swords, as if ready to use them, and began making their way up the steps to Eddie. He quickly backed away, trying to figure out what to do next.

“Look, I’m not here to make you guys mad, I just wanted to know where I am!” He ran to the other pair of stairs to avoid the skull guys. However, they were quicker than he thought, jumping to cross the space to his side and nearly slicing him in half with their swords. Eddie yelped and went on a sprint, trying to get away from them. He looked to the axe. With the light shining down on it, _clearly_ it was asking to be used. He grabbed for the weapon and it popped out of the ground. On the handle of the axe, he could see the word _Separator_ etched into its wood. It felt light and natural in his hands, much more than it really should be, but who was he to complain? It was likely his only defense against these skull-headed freaks. He didn’t like to kill but he knew this was in self-defense and had no qualms about it. So what if he took off a few heads? They were trying to kill him first! And so he swung. The axe went through them like butter and he grimaced.

“I hope I don’t kill everybody with this thing so easily.” he muttered. He turned back to the altar and there, leaning against it, was Clementine. At first he thought he’d left it behind in his world, but no, it was there. And one of the skull guys was about to impale it. That just wouldn’t do, he’d gone through a lot of shit to fix that thing for the past week and it wasn’t getting wrecked again! With a roar he charged the skull guy, distracting the creature long enough to kill it and save his guitar. He took it in his hands, just to make sure it was still in-tune and undamaged, and so he played a few notes. Lightning shot down from the sky behind him, striking a skull guy that had been sneaking up on him. Eddie grinned.

“Fucking awesome.” He played a few more notes. More lightning rained from the sky as the creatures amassed, striking them down with ease. However, his guitar was quickly growing too hot to play and he had to switch back to the axe for the time being. Once again he swung it with an unnatural ease, but these were faster and smarter than the last ones. They blocked his blows or dodged, nicking him with their own curvy swords. This wouldn’t be easy. And yet, somehow, he managed to fend them off, killing them one by one until he was the last one standing. Looking around, however, he could see no way out.

“Well, if there’s no exit,” He took out Clementine, “I’ll just have to make one!” He jumped in the air before strumming the strings on the way down, causing a shock wave that shook the area. The walls began to crumble, but it would take more than a single earthshaker to fell this place. After a couple more tries, the building around the altar finally fell and he could see the orange sky. Wait, _orange_? Was it sunset already? He went to the side to look but all he could see was a volcano in the distance and the face that the altar was also being made up of bones. It was too foggy and hot to see much else. Eddie backed away and turned as he heard the sound of crunching bones. Something was climbing up to meet him. He readied his axe, unsure if it would be more skull guys or something new. When it came into sight, Eddie thought it was a platform, but with legs. On top was what looked like a nun. He lowered his axe hesitantly. When it arrived, the platform kneeled to allow the Nun to climb off.

“Alright, nice try, lady. Or whatever you are.” Eddie wasn’t falling for this, “I’m supposed to think you’re a nun but I know you’re really kinda some big ugly demon, so let’s have it.” The Nun continued to stay kneeling for a moment, then her face turned. Eddie’s eyes widened. While much of her face was covered by her red headdress, her mouth was bare and had tons of sharp teeth. She stood and stepped off the platform.

“I knew it! I _knew_ it! Big ugly demon! But less on the ugly part, I guess, because you’re sexy in a weird way.” The Nun said nothing, throwing back her head before screaming at him. He flinched as gross gunk came out with the shriek and knew that he didn’t want to be hit by _that_. Eddie squinted at her as he raised the axe. It could have been déjà vu. But no, he’d seen the Nun before. Not the _exact_ one in front of him, per say, but his mother had sketched something eerily similar. She’d sketched a lot of things that reminded him of this place. And then he finally realized where he was.

“FUCK!” He fumbled with the axe for a moment before securing it in his grip, hands shaking. The Nun tilted her head, stopping short of reaching him. At best they were five feet apart and Eddie sure as hell didn’t want her coming closer, not until he knew if he was right or not. He swallowed, “Hey, uh, you’re a demon, right? A Battle Nun?” She was silent. Eddie kept pushing forward, “So, uh, this might be hard to believe, but you don’t have to hurt me! I’m a demon just like you!”

“Is that so?” Before he could blink, one of the Nun’s long fingers (claws, really) was at his throat. Her head was still tilted but her mouth was smiling, finding this amusing, “And why do you think that?”

“Because,” Eddie tried not to let the claw cut his throat, “Succoria is my mother.” The Nun reared back as if she’d been slapped.

“How dare you!” she shrieked, “You are human! Never would the great Succoria defile herself with human seed!” Her hands jerked back as her mouth opened, likely about to deal that gross howl she’d shown him before. Eddie had to think of something and _fast_.

“L-look at my belt buckle, my shirt!” He gestured to himself, “Both of these were given to me by my mother! The shirt even says ‘Succoria’ on it if you know what to look for! And if her blood got on the buckle, it was supposed to take her back here, to the Age of Metal, right? And since I’m her son, then my blood should work too!” The Nun paused. Her claw returned to Eddie’s neck before prodding his chin so that his head raised. She leaned closer to his shirt, then the belt buckle. He wondered how she could even see with the headpiece over her eyes.

“By Doviculus...” she breathed, “I see this is true. But,” Her claw didn’t move away as she straightened, “only Emperor Doviculus would be able to tell. He knew Succoria while I did not. Come.” She gestured, “Climb on the Overblesser and we will see what he has to say about you.” Eddie tried not to gulp. At least he wasn’t dying at the moment. He slid the axe on his back beside the guitar and climbed on top of the strange contraption. As he looked over the side, he couldn’t help but gasp. His mother told him many stories of this place, but he never thought he’d see it himself. In fact, he had always thought those stories were just that: _stories_. His father had always jokingly told him that his mother had an overactive imagination along with her protective streak and Eddie had believed him, until now.

“This is _so_ cool!” He stretched higher and a little more over the edge of the Overblesser, “This is the Temple, right? The Temple of Ormagöden? Man, I’ve only ever heard stories about this place! I wish I’d come here sooner! I feel so- so-” _‘At home’_ lingered on the tip of his tongue but he didn’t dare say it. How could he feel so good about a land he knew nothing about except from stories? He’d wait a little longer before he made a decision on what was truly his ‘home.’

“For being the Son of Succoria, you seem to know little of this place.” said the Nun, “Is she still alive?”

“Yeah.” Eddie nodded. He leaned down to take a look at the Overblesser as she climbed aboard.

“Then where is she now?”

“She didn’t come with me.” On the legs were gas masks. Eddie blinked and they blinked back, “Uh, is this thing made up of other demons?”

“I see.” The Nun ignored his question, kneeling before she began to pray. Eddie yelped and was nearly thrown off as the Overblesser rose, beginning to walk back down the way it had come. The only reason he wasn’t tumbling down the literal mountain of bones was the Nun hooking a claw into his jacket and pulling him back, not skipping a beat as she prayed on. He decided to stick close to her for the time being.

* * *

When she saw the news, Susan Riggs knew that what had happened on the stage wasn’t as the reports claimed. She knew for a fact that Eddie wasn’t dead. No offspring of hers would be off-ed so easily. His body may have been there, as she was told, but it wasn’t her _Eddie_. She had felt it that night, a tear in the land, that her escort had come to bring her back to her old home. It hadn’t taken her but had grabbed her son, his blood having awakened the shred of Ormagöden that made up her belt buckle. Eddie was in the Age of Metal and she knew for a fact that Doviculus would be out to kill him as soon as he knew of Eddie’s existence. So Susan did what any demon-turned-mother would do: She’d make her way back to the Age of Metal by tooth and nail until her son was by her side again. She’d figure out what happened next after she had Eddie back.

It had been a long time since Susan had been established, but now what her son needed was not his mother by name. What he needed was Succoria, his mother by blood. And so she would take up the mantle again. Doviculus had no idea what was coming and she hoped to see the look on his face when she returned. He’d be _so_ surprised.


	2. Please Stand By (Static’s the Main Channel)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seeing as this is AU, some things are different while others stay the same. I'll let you figure out what part is which.

Eddie tumbled off the Overblesser when it finally reached the main area of the Temple. The Nun had pushed him off and was now making her way over to a group of skull guys.

“You didn’t have to push.” he groaned. She huffed.

“Very whiny for being the Son of Succoria.” She looked back at him, or as much as she could with her headdress, “You could have stolen those items from her, as unlikely as it sounds.”

“I didn’t!” He got to his feet and waved his hands, “I swear, she gave these to me when I turned eighteen!”

“We will see when Emperor Doviculus arrives.” The Nun turned back to the skull guys. Eddie sighed and leaned against one of the pillars. It was a round area and huge engines dangled from the pillars. From what he’d seen so far, this place was kind of awesome. But he wondered what his mom was thinking right now. If he was here, then maybe he hadn’t died back in his world, just been taken here. But she’d still be worried sick about him. He didn’t want that. They’d both been so hurt when his father had passed. If anything, he needed to let her know he was okay, he was safe. Then maybe he’d stay here. But for the moment, his focus was on surviving long enough to find a way to get back to his mom. He took out a cigarette and lit it with his lighter. He wondered what else was out there. His tour book was in his pocket and it held all of his mother’s drawings in it, likely her memories of this world. He’d always thought her stories had been strange but now they made so much sense. Battling alongside Battle Nuns, fighting beings of darkness, always being the winner against an enemy. But if she was a demon,  _ who _ had been the enemy? Humans? He shook his head. No, in some of the stories she’d told him, she’d said the heroes had been human. She emphasized their heroics, valor, and friendship. A few times his father had even been included in the stories. He just wondered why she’d never told him. Finding out she was a demon and that he was likely half-demon was giving him a huge mind-fuck. He glanced over when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. It was one of the skull guys, coming over to him. But there was no bare jaw bone of this one.

“Hey.” It was a woman. She raised her hood up enough for him to see her face. Light eyes, dark hair, pale skin, and eyeshadow. She looked like a goth, but she was human. What was she doing here? He opened his mouth but she shushed him, “Don’t. Stay quiet.” He nodded. He didn’t know what she was up to but seeing another human helped put him at ease. At least he wasn’t in a land that was populated just by demons. She pulled her hood back down and returned to the group. From her sleeves dropped two swords. Unlike the wavy kind of the skull guys, these were straight and on the handles was the embellishment of an ankh inside a bird. And then she struck. He watched in awe as she took down several of the skull guys before anyone knew what was going on and then she was going toe-to-toe with the Nun. Seeing other skull guys sneaking behind her, Eddie grabbed his guitar. He moved closer and played a few notes, letting lightning rain down on the hooded creatures. The woman seemed to think he was in danger and was trying to free him. He didn’t mind that, but there was no reason for her to risk her life for him. He had to get this straightened out. But then the woman knocked down the Nun and was about to kill her.

“Enough!” Eddie roared. He made an Earthshaker and forced the two apart, but not for long. Both rolled to their feet, glaring at one another. He ran to get between them, “Hold it hold it hold it! Can’t we all just calm down and talk this out?”

“Step aside, child.” hissed the Nun. There were cuts in her outfit and she was leaning heavily on the leg hidden under her dress. The other looked like a chunk had been taken out of it by the other woman’s swords and was bleeding, red as the dress she wore.

“Get out of here!” The human tossed her head over her shoulder, “Either that or kill the Nun so we can escape!” There were also wounds on her, but not as numerous or terrible as the Nun’s.

“Wait, I’m not going with anyone!” He turned to the human woman, “Look, I’m here of my own free will! Well, kinda. It’s a long story. But I’m not here as a slave or anything, I swear, so you don’t have to help me!”

“Yeah, you’re the ‘Son’ of Succoria. I’ve heard.” The woman narrowed her eyes, “How am I supposed to believe you’re not lying just so I won’t get hurt?”

“I’m not-” Before Eddie could say more, the Nun slapped him aside and charged the human. She got out of the way but the Nun was more relentless this time. The demon turned the tables on the woman and managed to smack her down. Eddie grimaced and lifted his axe.

“I hope this works.” He threw it at the Nun just as she struck. The demon cried out as her arm was sliced off.

“How dare you!” she howled, “If you were truly Succoria’s son, then you would help me end this worthless human’s life!”

“I’m not here to end anyone’s life!” Eddie protested.

“Finally.” The human tried to strike out at the Nun but Eddie blocked her with his guitar. Much to his surprise, her swords didn’t damage Clementine. He pushed her back, gently enough so that she would stay on her feet.

“Look, no one’s killing  _ anyone _ here!” He turned to the Nun, “I know I said I’d wait for this Doviculus guy but I’m not gonna let another person die here! If I were you, I’d leave us alone before someone does something we’d all regret.”

“You dare-!”

“Yes I dare! I dare give orders to a bitchy Nun so no one else has to die today! I’m a roadie, not a killer!” He picked up the axe from where it had fallen after the throw, “Just let us go and you don’t get hurt. Deal?” The Nun was silent. Her free hand was holding the stump of her arm, trying to keep from bleeding out. Much to his surprise, she turned and hobbled away. The woman didn’t lower her swords until she was sure the Nun was gone and even then she trained them on Eddie when he approached.

“Why?” she asked, “Why did you let that monster live?”

“Like I said, I’m  _ not _ a killer. Now who are you and what are you doing here?” The woman lowered her weapons, if only slightly.

“Ophelia. The reason I came here was to grab that.” She pointed to the axe in his hand, “It was Succoria’s. But if you’re really her son, then I guess it belongs to you.”

“I am! At least, I think so.” Eddie sighed, “It’s a long story and I’m sure we need to get out of here first.”

“Won’t be that easy, I’m afraid.” Ophelia moved to a pair of doors that Eddie hadn’t noticed before. She pulled back the slat to see forces massing on the other side and quickly slid it closed again, “There’s no way out except through those doors and I don’t think you’ll be able to talk us out of another situation.” Eddie looked around. There had to be another way out. There, in the middle, he could see an inscription on the main pillar. He went over to it.

“Wait a second.” He brushed his hand over the lines, “These are chords. Maybe...” He pulled out Clementine.

“What are you doing?” Ophelia asked.

“Hopefully finding us a way out.” He began playing the chords. After finishing the solo, the ground began to shake and pieces of metal forced their way up out of the stone. An etching glowed from the floor and Eddie realized what he was seeing.

“What did-?”

“No time for questions. Here!” He handed her a tire, “Just do as I say and we’ll be out of here in no time!” Ophelia could only nod. Together, following the etching, they were able to cobble together a wicked-looking car. Eddie grinned and hopped in. Turning the key, he was surprised to find that it started, seeing as there had been no gas tank included. Ophelia jumped back, grabbing her swords.

“What have you done?!” she exclaimed, “You’ve awakened the spirit of the Beast himself!”

“I hope so! It’s our only chance of getting out of this joint!” He gestured, “Hop in!” Ophelia hesitated, but she could hear growing roars from beyond the doors. She climbed in quickly and Eddie instructed her to fasten her seatbelt.

“What will this do? Is it to keep me in place to be killed?”

“It’s to keep you  _ from  _ getting killed. Hang on!” He put the car in gear and sped through the doors. They ran over dozens of skull guys as Ophelia hung on, Eddie laughing into the wind, “Oh man, I love this! But I’ve got a few questions.”

“After we get out of here!” she shouted over the wind, “We have to get out before they close the feeding area gates!”

“And where’s that?”

“Just follow the path! Past it is the bridge that gets us out of here!”

“On it.” He stepped on the gas pedal. As they ripped through more of the hooded creatures and dodged a few giant ones with cages hanging below, Ophelia seemed to be finally calming down. She shook herself as they sped on. Eddie glanced at her.

“Can I ask now?”

“Yes.” She nodded.

“So, why are there so many of these guys out to stop us?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe it’s because of you?”

“Probably, maybe. We can think about that later. What I wanna know is what’s going on with the land right now.”

“These are some dark times.” Ophelia said, “Humanity has been enslaved. I’m working with others to try and strike up a rebellion to free everyone from the demons.” Eddie nodded.

“So you were at the Temple to grab this axe to help in the cause?”

“Yes.” Ophelia nodded back, “If others saw that we had control over one of the greatest weapons of legend, then maybe it would help turn them to our side.” She turned to him, “But with you on our side, maybe things can change.”

“Don’t know about that.” Eddie blew out some smoke that was sucked into the wind, “I told you, I’m the Son of Succoria. She was the old Emperor here before Doviculus came along, right?” When Ophelia agreed, he went on, “If any human finds out about that, then they might not wanna be with me.”

“I still find it hard to believe.” Ophelia said. Eddie sighed.

“Look, I’m pretty sure I’m her son because Succoria was my mother’s maiden name.”

“Maiden name?”

“It’s the last name she used to have before marrying my father. I always thought it was a weird maiden name, but I guess that’s because it’s her actual name.”

“And who was your father?”

“Roger Riggs. I was always told that the stories she talked about were only stories.” He glanced out at the sky rushing past them, “Until I came here. I’m rethinking everything she talked about because of this. There’s no way anything she made up was fiction, not from what I can see.” Slowly, Ophelia nodded.

“If you really  _ are _ the son of the White-Winged Death, then it has to stay a secret.”

“The what?”

“The White-Winged Death. It was one of many names for Succoria. Before she left, she was known as one of demonkind’s greatest warriors.”

“No wonder her axe is such a high commodity.” Eddie murmured.

“Why were you siding with the Nun, anyway?” Ophelia narrowed her eyes.

“She was the first person that didn’t try to kill me right away, that I could reason with. I guess, since I’m half-demon and such, I kinda owed it to her not to let her die. I said it once, I’ll say it again: I’m just a roadie,  _ not _ a killer.” Ophelia said nothing. It was at that moment that they drove off the edge of the path and fell into a huge arena, but as they did so, the gates were sliding closed, one by one. Ophelia gave a noise of frustration.

“We’re too late! If we can’t get through, we’re dead!”

“There’s gotta be a way to open ‘em, just like at the Temple.” He stopped to let her out, “See what you can do, I’ll keep an eye out as I drive around.”

“In circles?” She raised an eyebrow. Eddie shrugged.

“Hey, if we get attacked again, I’ll be able to keep ‘em busy.” Ophelia shook her head but began making her way over to one of the gates. Before he took off again, Eddie looked around. All the gates were closed but there was a hole in the middle of the arena, walls around it somewhat. Ophelia had said this was the feeding area and Eddie didn’t want to stick around to see what was being fed. He drove around, trying to see if there was another way out, but there was no chance. They’d have to stick with trying to get the gates open somehow. He stopped the car in front of the gate Ophelia was working on and took out another cig. He was a smoker, but he didn’t go through too many a day. However, this place was causing him to think twice about everything. He sighed, a puff of smoke following his breath. It was possible his mother wasn’t the demon here, it could have been his father, or maybe they were both demons, but he felt those to be lies. His father couldn’t have been a demon, it made no sense to Eddie. If they’d both been demons, then wouldn’t he have known from the start? Wouldn’t he look more monstrous if he was? Eddie gazed at his hands as they rested on the steering wheel. With his mother a demon, did that mean he had some of her powers, whatever they might be? Could he fly, could he burn the ground with a single step? He didn’t know the abilities of the demons here but they had to have  _ something _ to their name besides their ugliness and he had to have inherited something from her. But what? And, though the sky had grown dark, he was able to see a shadow fall over the car. He looked up.

_ Crap. _ The monster looked like a giant worm but with a huge mouth and no eyes. It leaned down, sniffing at him, and Eddie stayed still. He caught a whiff of its stench and grimaced.

“Smells like a whale... ate some cabbage... then died in your mouth... like a year ago!” he couldn’t help but comment, coughing through the stink. It screeched at him. He put the car in gear and slammed on the gas. Maybe insulting a giant monster  _ wasn’t _ his best idea. Ophelia shouted something but it rushed by with the wind. Eddie had no time to listen, he had to figure out how to beat this thing before it beat him. As it reared up, he hit the nitro button on the bash and the car zoomed forward, just missing getting hit by the giant worm. He looked back and saw that some of its tongues had gotten caught in the ground and that gave him an idea. He put the car into a rough U-turn and rammed it into one of the tongues. The thing screeched in pain.

“You like that, Ms. Licky? Keep that ugly muscle in your mouth next time!” he taunted. It tried to hit him a second time, only with the same results, “I can’t believe you fell for that twice!” And after the third time, the giant worm reared up in pain. Eddie came to a stop beside the gate, where Ophelia was now waiting. He said, “Looks like that thing’ll never French-kiss again.”

“What’s French-kissing?” Eddie looked at Ophelia. Did she  _ actually _ not know what French-kissing was? He blushed, thinking of how to explain it.

“It’s… it’s uh…” Why was he growing all tongue-tied over this? He’d kissed plenty of girls before, talked to them and stuff! What had changed?

“Well, the gate’s open now.” She gestured to it with a sword.

“Oh, the gate! Right, let’s get in the car and go.” They ran to the car. The giant worm screeched again, slamming down and trying to hit them. They dodged out of the way but it kept them from getting to the car. Ophelia frowned and moved to the gate.

“Over here, you foul and rotten worm!” she said. It turned.

“Ophelia!” Eddie exclaimed. He was afraid she was about to get hurt. The worm then charged, but she dodged again. It hit its head on the other side of the gate and groaned. It had been stunned.

“Use your weapon to close the gate!” called Ophelia. Eddie nodded. He knew the axe wouldn’t do anything on the steel chains but the guitar would. He got closer before doing an Earthshaker, which snapped the chains on the gate and forced it closed, right on top of the worm’s neck.

“DECAPITATIOOOON!” Eddie went into a power slide. He was being awesome, of course, saving the cute girl from the ravenous demon worm. Ophelia gave him a look.

“Why?”

“It’s cool.” Eddie shrugged, “When do you ever get to decapitate an ugly monster worm with just your guitar and a gate?”

“Let’s get going.” Ophelia headed back to the car, “We can use one of the other gates-” She was cut off as, miraculously, the worm moved up and took the gate with it. It was still spewing blood but alive. Eddie ran back to the car as Ophelia hopped in. Without a word he started it and had them zooming past the worm and down a large roadway, but there were still other obstacles, seeing as the bridge was collapsing under the attack of the dying worm. Eddie focused on getting them out of there. When they were free, he’d have more to ask about what was going on.

“Faster!” Ophelia cried, “FASTER!”

“I’m going as fast as I can!” Eddie really wished he had a cigarette right now. He swerved to avoid the growing holes in the bridge and the walking cages that tried to take him down with them. As they started to come to the end, Eddie pushed the nitro button. He didn’t have much else of a choice if they wanted to get out of there alive. Ophelia screamed as the car jumped the huge gap, but they managed to land safely on the road. Eddie skidded to a stop and they watched as the rest of the bridge collapsed.

“That was close.” he commented. When there was no response, he turned to look at Ophelia. She was pale, or at least paler than she had been, “You okay?”

“Am I okay?  _ Am I okay? _ I just survived running a deathtrap gauntlet in this fancified minecart and you’re asking if I’m  _ okay _ ?”

“Fine, fine! Geez, you don’t have to be so mean about-” Eddie was cut off as Ophelia tugged him down for a kiss. It wasn’t a long one, but it was enough to get them both blushing.

“That was for the ride.” She then punched his arm, “That was  _ also  _ for the ride.”

“At least we’re alive.” Eddie said. He put the car in gear again and asked, “Where to?”

“Look for a giant stone sword. That’s Bladehenge, where the rest of the rebellion is.”

“Got it.” He drove forward. Now that they weren’t in danger, he had the car going at a more leisurely pace, so as not to scare Ophelia too much more. Her hair whipped in the wind as she watched the land go by.

“It felt like a minecart, but it’s not. What  _ is _ it?” Her hand moved across the side of the car.

“I call it the Druid Plow. Went right through those hooded nasties.” Eddie made a motion to follow along with his words, swiping his hand in front of himself. Ophelia rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face. Eddie went on, “It’s called a car, Druid Plow’s just the name I came up for it. We have a lot of these, back where I came from. They’re like minecarts, like you said, but they have this thing called an engine that puts out so much power it moves the car. That’s what you heard when I started the car, that ‘roar’ you said came from Ormagöden, I guess.” Ophelia nodded in understanding. Silence descended on them again before she spoke.

“How do you know so much about this place if this is your first time here?”

“Because of my mom’s stories. I knew what the Temple was, what demons were, I saved my skin by telling the Nun all that I could about Succoria, who the demons hold in high regard. How could I talk about their long-gone ruler if I had no idea who she was?”

“Good point. So, you knew where we were?”

“The Temple of Ormagöden.” Eddie answered, not missing a beat. Ophelia nodded.

“That’s right. It’s a place of ancient power but no one knows its true purpose.”

“I think its purpose was just fulfilled.” Eddie mused.

“What do you mean?”

“My belt buckle. It was a transportation device, kinda. If you got blood in it, specifically Succoria’s blood, It would summon a version of Ormagöden to bring the wearer back to the Age of Metal. She probably left for the modern world from the same place, so the Temple was built around where she left and protected by demons for the day when she’d return.”

“I guess that makes sense. And your blood worked because you’re her son.”

“Which you still find hard to believe.” Eddie quipped.

“Can you blame me?” Ophelia shrugged, “You don’t exactly look demonic or have done anything to show it.”

“I know that, but I’m sure she’s my mom. It’s hard to believe any of this came out of someone’s imagination unless they were a game designer or something.”

“A what?”

“Nothing.” Eddie shook his head. His eyes lit up when he saw the sword in the distance, “And there’s Bladehenge!”

“Wait.” Ophelia laid a hand on his wrist, “Don’t say a word about being a demon to the others. They wouldn’t take it well if they knew what you were.”

“Right. But can we ever tell them?”

“We’ll see. Maybe when the rebellion succeeds.” Eddie said nothing. He didn’t like having to keep this secret, now that he knew of it, but he trusted Ophelia’s judgement. She’d kept them alive so far and likely knew more about this place than he did, even with his mother’s stories. She knew what she was talking about, hopefully.

* * *

“Let me ask just one question.” Doviculus murmured, walking in front of the troops that had been stationed at the Temple, “Who’s fault is it that the Separator has been stolen and you let a human spy escape?” No one said anything, “That’s right, it’s  _ all _ of your faults.” He stopped at the end, where the Battle Nun who had been stationed there stood to attention. Part of her right arm was missing and her blood still tainted the air, despite the bandage. He asked, “Tell me your spin on these events, Trixie.”

“Yes, Emperor Doviculus.” She gave a bow, “I heard a commotion at the altar and when I arrived, I found a male human holding the Separator. He claimed to have been Succoria’s son, sire, so I led him to the main area in preparation to wait for you. But when the human spy attacked, he took her side, yet he refused to kill me.” Her remaining hand curled around the stub of her arm, as if remembering it, “Then they built something made by the Titans and left.”

“Succoria’s son, you say?” He sniffed the air, “Yes, I can smell her presence now, but it’s different.” He turned to a Warfather, “Lucius, let the rest of our army know that the Son of Succoria is here and that he is to be captured, dead or alive, at all costs. Let even that pathetic  _ Lionwhyte _ know of this, in case Succoria’s son tries something.”

“Yes, Emperor Doviculus.” The Warfather bowed. Doviculus turned back to Trixie, “And as for you, my dear, you will return to the palace. You are the only one here who has seen Succoria's son and lived to tell the tale. I may need you to help identify him.”

“Yes, sire.” She bowed again. He smirked as relief could be smelled on her. He soon dismissed the troops and walked to the main pillar. Trixie had said that the humans had built something from what the Titans had left behind. If they were able to discover the secrets so easily, even with Succoria’s son on their side, then he would need to make sure the secrets stayed hidden somehow. He needed to either get the human-demon male on his side or kill him so that no one would stand in his way. He took out his dual-bladed staff and smashed the slab that stood in front of the pillar. The flowers around it had already wilted away before he arrived, likely not having been needed anymore once the secret was uncovered. No one would be reading that secret again.

* * *

First step in time traveling: Figure out how to travel in time. Easier said than done. Succoria had only been around for part of the process, not all of it, but she knew enough to get started. She’d also need magic, but here, it wasn’t as powerful as it used to be. She had friends that knew magic well enough to help, however. That had been one of her first things to do after getting her will to live back, to find allies who could do magic in case something went wrong with the buckle. Over time they’d become friends and she hoped they were as willing to help her out now as they had been then. After all, that’s what friends were for, right?

“Angie!” She rapped on the door. Angie Wilkins was her first and best human friend. It helped that they lived in houses right next to each other and Succoria had helped take care of her children while Angie was out, working as a lawyer. Succoria found lawyers fascinating, able to create contracts from nothing and striking out loopholes. She wished she’d had a lawyer or two during her time as Emperor, but she’d think more about that later. Eddie came first.

“Susan!” Angie gave her a hug after seeing who was at the door. Her blond hair was up in a messy bun, in contrast to Succoria’s long, black hair, but they both had brown eyes. Angie waved her inside, “Come in! How are you feeling?”

“About what? You mean Eddie?”

“Yeah. I’m so sorry about what happened to him. Here, come into the kitchen, I’ll fix you something to drink.”

“Thank you.” Succoria gave a tired smile. She followed her friend into the kitch and sat at the mini-bar as Angie set about making some tea, “I didn’t come by to talk about Eddie.”

“If you’re asking if I can bring him back-”

“Not that.” Succoria shook her head, “I wanted to ask if you and the others could help me travel back in time?”

“In time?” Angie gave her an astonished look, “I don’t know, Susan. Messing with time isn’t something that should be taken lightly.”

“I’m not talking about going back to a few weeks ago. I need to go back to  _ my _ time.”

“But what about your belt buckle?”

“I gave that to Eddie.”

“I see.” Angie’s eyes lit up in understanding, “So you think, if he got his blood in the buckle, he went back to your time.”

“Exactly.” Succoria nodded.

“Then what about his body?” Angie finished making the tea and poured a cup for Succoria. The demoness took the offering gratefully.

“The body is insignificant. Ormagöden will take back someone’s soul if the body is damaged and you’ll wake up just as you were.” At least, that’s what she was told.

“It’ll still be hard, Susan, but I’ll see what I can do.”

“If you need help, I remember some things from when the buckle was being made. Maybe that could help give insight into finding a way back.”

“That’s true, but time-travel is still tricky.”

“We’ll figure that out once we start working on it.” Succoria said, waving her off, “I’ll see if I can’t gather the others to help.”

“Good luck with that.” Angie said, “Otis’ll be happy to help but it might be harder to get the rest of the coven on board.”

“Leave that to me.” Succoria assured, “And thank you for the tea!”

“Specialty from my native country of England, at your service.”


	3. You Better Beware, You Better Take Care

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title is from Fast as a Shark by Accept, another song included in Brütal Legend. And, since I'm not exactly a Metal person, other chapter titles will be from songs that aren't Metal. Sorry.
> 
> Seeing as I want this to last, the chapters may go into detail on the lives of Ironheade and Eddie and such, more than what we see in the game. Hope you guys don't mind.

When Eddie had the car come to a stop, a woman was waiting for them. In her hands was a halberd, the black of her clothes and eyeliner standing out against her shock of blond hair and light skin. She had it readied and pointed at the car as the two of them came out before it settled on him. Eddie held up his hands in surrender. No need to make any enemies, especially if they were Ophelia’s friends.

“Ophelia! What have you brought home this time?!”

“It’s okay, Lita!” Ophelia put a hand on the halberd and made the woman lower it, “He’s here to help.”

“Really.” Lita narrowed her eyes. Eddie relaxed once she turned away from him, halberd in hand, “Then what of this monstrosity?”

“Eddie made it, from the Titans’ instructions at the Temple.” Lita said nothing, moving around the Druid Plow, wary. Her halberd struck out at one of the tires but it did no damage. Eddie breathed a sigh of relief.

“If what you say is true, Ophelia, then we may have a chance now.” Lita said, “Edward, was it?”

“Eddie, but yeah.” he nodded.

“Well, Edward, come with me. Lars’ll want to meet you.” Eddie started forward, then looked back. Ophelia wasn’t moving.

“You coming?” he asked.

“In a minute. Go ahead.” Ophelia gestured forward. Eddie frowned.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, things are fine. Just go.” Ophelia turned to the car. Eddie made to move to her side before he was interrupted by a shout.

“Hello there!” Eddie turned. Inside the natural stone walls, at the top of the hill, were Lita and who Eddie could only assume was Lars. The man was bare-chested with the exception of his vest and a sheath rested at his side. He waved upon getting the roadie’s attention, “Edward, is it? Please, come and share your tales!” Eddie glanced back at Ophelia. He didn’t want to leave her behind but he also didn’t want to keep the others waiting, and so he went up the hill to join Lars and Lita.

* * *

After explaining his travel through time (that’s all he could think of it as, really, besides going to a different dimension) and nixing the part about being a demon’s child, Eddie gauged them for their responses. Lars had managed to get Ophelia to join them as they listened to Eddie’s story and by the time he’d finished they were wearing various mixtures of amazement. Lita was the most skeptical.

“So, let me get this straight.” Lars began, “After this ‘concert’ you were working on, you got hurt and passed out, where you woke up here? And you have the Separator?”

“Yeah.” Eddie nodded. He didn’t want to freak them out too much and so was only describing the bare bones of it. If they asked, however, he would answer.

“So, the ‘instrument’ you carry with you,” Lita said, “the ‘band’ plays with it and they create music?”

“Lots of it.” Eddie nodded, “People start bands so they can share their great music with the world, though some _really_ shouldn’t.” He grimaced as he thought back to Kabbage Boy.

“It also creates lightning, fire, even moves the ground itself!” Ophelia added.

“Which it never did before in my time, mind you.” said Eddie, “A guitar never shot fire or called lightning from the sky, it just played music. But I guess it makes sense, in a way.”

“How so?” Lars asked. Eddie shrugged.

“From when I came, spells had sort-of a musical feel to them when said, like the only way to channel the magic was through music. Being able to do similar magic here makes sense.”

“Um, could we get back to the part where you were summoned here from another time?” Lita said. She made a gesture with her hand, as if saying ‘Get on with it.’

“Right.” Eddie sat back, or as much as he could on this log of tires, “Any questions?”

“Do you wanna go back to your own time? I’m sure someone’s wondering where you are.”

“Yeah...” Eddie frowned, “The only person I left behind was my mom. I had a few friends here and there, but she’s the only person I really wanna get back to, if just to say goodbye.”

“Goodbye? Why?” asked Lars. Eddie shrugged.

“Never felt like I fit in there. Here, it’s amazing and deadly.” The roadie gestured at the area around them, “I’d love to live here for the rest of my life if I could! But I owe her at least a goodbye.”

“You could just invite her to stay here with you.” Ophelia added. She got up and moved off. Eddie wondered where she was going until Lita got his attention again.

“But you say Ormagöden itself brought you here?” she asked, “How?”

“Uh, from my belt, I think.” He tilted the belt buckle so they could see it better, “I got blood in it, last thing I remember, and then I woke up in the Temple.”

“The design _does_ look like Ormagöden.” Lars mused, “Perhaps there’s a reason why you happened to have it just before it brought you here.”

“Don’t start on that again.” Lita shook her head. Eddie glanced between them.

“Start what?” he asked.

“There’s a legend that states a warrior would come to help the humans in their time of need through the power of Ormagöden.”

“Someone who would _destroy_ us!” Lita said.

“Or deliver us!” Ophelia protested, returning with some bottles. She moved to Eddie’s side.

“Mead?”

“Here.” Ophelia handed him a bottle, “There’s no mead, whatever that is, but there’s plenty of beer.”

“Awesome.” Eddie accepted the gift, “But this legend?”

“The translation isn’t the best.” Lars said, “We don’t know for sure if the person is for our benefit or our destruction. However, I can tell that you’re here to help us.”

“Okay, sure, I could be that guy, maybe. But then where’s the rest of your army?” The three looked away. They seemed to be ashamed. Eddie raised an eyebrow, “You really don’t have an army, do ya?”

“There are so many details we need to manage, but we haven’t been able to do anything with them.” Lars gestured around, “It’s why we don’t have anyone besides ourselves.”

“Sounds like you guys need a roadie.” Eddie grinned, “Good news for you, I’m one.”

“A roadie? What’s that?” asked Lita.

“It’s someone who helps the band with all their equipment and stuff. We keep the instruments in tune, protect the band, that sort of thing. We also help keep their schedules organized, all the details become understandable.”

“Then with your help we can gain the army we need!” Ophelia said, “We can finally wage war and free ourselves!”

“Hold it!” Eddie put up a hand, “I’m not waging war. I’m just a roadie. I don’t kill people, but I can help you do stuff behind the scenes. All the fighting, though? That’s gonna have to come from you guys.” He pointed at them.

“Fair enough.” Lars nodded, “We’ll start making plans in the morning. It’s late and to win this war, we need to be in our best shape.”

“Good idea.” Eddie stood, “I’ll just go get the Druid Plow and bring it in here. I don’t wanna lose the thing, since it’s the only car around.”

“Wait.” Ophelia dug through her pockets before coming up with a small, folded piece of paper, “Here.” She held out the paper, “It’s a map of the area, all we know so far. It should help when you’re driving around.”

“Thanks.” He took it gratefully. The three watched as he left. Lita huffed.

“So I assume he’ll be in charge of this whole thing, is that it?” She crossed her arms, “He doesn’t wanna fight, so what good is he?”

“He knows how to keep things in order, which is what we need.” Lars said, “I'll set up his tent. When he gets back, do one of you mind showing him where the food is?”

“I’ll do it.” Ophelia offered. Lars gave her a smile.

“Thank you.” The two women were soon left in silence, only broken by the crackle of the fire. Lita glared.

“I don’t trust what you’ve brought back here, Ophelia. He might be here as a spy, to turn on us! Wielding the Separator makes him all the more dangerous!”

“Trust me, Lita, he’s on our side. He saved my life more than once today.” Lita clearly didn’t believe her but said no more.

“Guys! You won’t believe what I just found out!” Eddie came running over, “So, you know that slab of rock in front of this place, right? When it had some notes and when I played them, the car came back to be out of nowhere! Maybe I’ll be able to summon it if it’s not around, so I’ll never lose it!”

“The Tab Slab? You managed to figure out its secret?” The girls were astonished.

“Yeah, c’mon!” The group made their way to the front of Bladehenge. Where the slab had once been glowing purple it now glowed red and a skull ornament covered the notes. Eddie took out Clementine, “Watch this!” He played some notes and, like he had said, the Druid Plow sped out of nowhere to his side.

“Interesting.” Lita rested a hand on the side of the car, “We were never able to discover any of the Titans’ secrets until you came along. The Tab Slab has been out here forever, as long as I can remember, and you figured it out in the span of five minutes! Maybe you really _are_ the warrior we’ve been waiting for.”

“Yeah, no.” Eddie shrugged, “I just know music.” As they talked, Ophelia knelt beside the slab. The red, cross-shaped flowers that had been growing there had now withered away. She frowned, glancing at Eddie. Had discovering the slab’s secret caused this? She’d always loved the flowers and their blood-red hue. If finding out the secrets of the Titans killed them, she wasn’t sure if that was a good idea. She may have been advocating Eddie as the good guy on his behalf, but she didn’t know if the wilted flowers meant something else.

* * *

“Rise and shine, sleepyhead.” came a voice. Eddie groaned, moving an arm.

“Guh ‘way.” he mumbled.

“Get up already, Eddie.” Ophelia gently nudged him with her shoe. When he only growled in response, she graduated to kicking.

“I’m up!” Eddie said at last, throwing off the fur that he’d been using as a blanket. Ophelia smiled.

“Breakfast is by the fire pit. Don’t go back to sleep.” She walked away. Eddie rubbed his eyes. He had never been a morning person and wasn’t about to start being one. But he knew that Ophelia wasn’t going to let him sleep and so he got up for the day. He threw on his shirt and shoes (he’d slept in his pants), grabbed his vest, and double-checked that all the pins were still on it. He grabbed his wristbands and slid them on. The spiked one always took his left wrist while the pain one decorated his right. He threaded a hand through his hair and winced, finding tangles. A consequence of having long hair. Maybe one of the others had a comb or something. Moving a hand over his chin, he knew he’d also need to trim away the hair there soon. He didn’t want a full-on beard, a soul patch suited him just fine. Maybe Lars had a way to remedy it. Once he was ready, he got up and climbed out of the tent, leaving both axes behind. The sun was just peeking over the horizon. Apparently ‘morning’ to these guys meant ‘as soon as the sun was up.’ He needed coffee. Did they even have coffee here? He hoped so.

“Morning, Edward.” said Lita after Eddie had arrived. He yawned and sat on the tire log, rubbing his face. She was the only other person there at the moment, sipping on a cup of something as a pot bubbled over the fire. It didn’t smell like coffee, but if it was their version of it he’d take it.

“Do you guys have a comb or a razor or something?” he asked.

“Yeah. Here.” She handed him a comb of bone, “Keep it, it’s from Raptor Elk Horn and they’re plentiful here.”

“Thanks.” He commenced with combing his hair, “I’ll talk to Lars later about the razor.”

“What _is_ a razor, exactly?”

“Eh, you use it to shave and stuff.” Eddie gestured to his face, “I’ll probably have to use a knife instead. Lovely.”

“If you can handle the Separator, I’m sure you can handle a tiny little knife.” Lita was smiling. Eddie rolled his eyes.

“Do you have coffee around?” He put the comb in a pocket once he was done.

“What’s coffee?”

“You drink it in the morning to get you awake.”

“We don’t have that, exactly, but we have something similar.” She pointed to the pot, “We call it Titan’s Breath. Grab a cup and help yourself.” Lita handed him a mug.

“Thanks.” Eddie dipped the cup in and blew at the drink before taking a sip. He nearly choked at the bitterness. It was a hundred times worse than the blackest coffee he’d ever tasted and he’d tasted some shit in his life on the road, “How can you stand this?!” Lita was snickering.

“You don’t just drink it bare, you put in some sugar.” She handed him a bowl of the stuff, a spoon poking out, “Only hardcore heroes or idiots drink Titan’s Breath bare.”

“Thanks for the warning.” Eddie drawled. He scooped almost half the bowl into the drink, but when he tried it again, it was _really_ sweet. However, he could stand this cup of diabetes better than the Devil’s version of coffee. He handed the sugar back, “What’s it made out of?”

“Tollusk blood.” He nearly spat out the drink.

“Say what now?!”

“It’s made from Tollusk blood.” Lita raised an eyebrow, “It’s hard to come by because of how tough Tollusks are to kill, but once you get their blood, boiling it makes Titan’s Breath.” Eddie was still for a moment before he put the drink aside. He suddenly felt nauseous.

“I think I’m gonna go this morning _without_ coffee.”

“Suit yourself.” Lita shrugged. Ophelia then came over to the fire pit. Lita’s face changed from easy-going to guarded. If he wasn’t sure of it before, he was sure now. For some reason, Lita had some sort of issue with Ophelia. Eddie wished he knew why but he didn’t ask. It wasn’t his place to get involved, at least not right now. Ophelia handed him the leg on something they’d kept in storage. After heating it over the fire for a few minutes, he bit into it. It tasted as good now as it had last night. He could get used to this.

“Where’s Lars?” Eddie asked, curious.

“In his tent.” Ophelia said, “He stays in there in the mornings, eating along and cleaning himself for the day. We don’t usually see him for a few hours.”

“And what about plans? What’s the first thing to do?”

“Our main goal at the moment is to free others from enslavement.” said Lita, “Starting with Lionwhyte.”

“Who?”

“He’s the demons’ human general.” Lita explained, “He keeps the area under control for them for some reason. Lars and I, we used to know him before he betrayed us.” Eddie gave a slow nod.

“That’s fucked up.” he said, “But he has all these people under his control?”

“That’s right.” Ophelia nodded, “All our men are in his mines and our women are stuck in his filthy Pleasure Tower.” She spat the words with hate. From the name alone, Eddie could guess what the place was for. He tightened his grip on the leg.

“Who’re we going for first, then?” Eddie asked.

“The men.” said Lita. She gave Ophelia a look, different from before, “Lars would kill us if we let you go to the Pleasure Tower again.”

“I’ll be fine.” said Ophelia.

“You were nearly killed last time! I don’t think that counts as ‘fine.’” Ophelia rolled her eyes.

“Okay, I won’t go. Happy?”

“As much as I can be.” Lita said. She went back to her previous glower, which Ophelia went back to ignoring.

“Here, I have a better idea.” Eddie said, “As a compromise, we’ll free the dudes first, then they’ll help us free the ladies. Deal?”

“Deal.” Ophelia said. Eddie smiled. After that, he set about helping the girls with whatever the camp needed for the day, before Lars came out of his tent. There wasn’t much to do, considering how big Bladehenge was, but he still helped with doing laundry and hunting for food. Hunting was how he got introduced to the Steel-Quilled Urchins and Raptor Elk. Freaky, but cool. Well, when you weren’t being chased by a pack of them as they bayed for your blood. Eddie learned a lesson there somewhere but he wasn’t sure what it was.

* * *

Second step in time traveling: Find the rest of your friends and convince them to help you travel in time. Otis was Angie’s husband, so it wouldn’t be difficult to find and convince him, but finding Anne Marie, Lauren, Derrik, James, Tom, Verne, and Sam was another story. They lived in different parts of the US now, Anne Marie, Verne, and Sam even lived in different countries, but if she was to find Eddie again, she needed to get their help. It was times like this that Succoria wished they’d made some sort of communication item to keep in touch, as part of the ‘Susan Riggs Witch Squad.’ Not her idea, it had been Tom’s to name it that. She had no idea if they had phones, either. She had tried to get their numbers, but only Derrik and Lauren had given theirs up. So they were the ones she contacted first. She couldn’t get in touch with Derrik, but she did manage to get his husband, who said that the other had gone to visit family in Ireland. Just great. At least she was able to get Lauren after three tries.

“Susan, do you have _any_ idea what time it is?” Lauren growled.

“Yeah, one in the morning, don’t care.” Succoria said. Living on the West Coast with your friend on the East had its drawbacks, “Look, I need you to form the ‘Witch Squad’ with me again.”

“The Witch-? Susan, that ended long ago. I’m not involved in magic anymore.”

“Please, Lauren. It’s about Eddie.” There was silence on the other end for a few moments.

“Eddie? I heard about him, but you can’t just go dabbling into magic-”

“I’m not dabbling. If you’ll come back, I’ll explain the whole thing.”

“Bullshit.” Lauren said, “Tell me now or I’m hanging up.” Succoria sighed. Lauren had always been the sort to want the truth before she went along with anything.

“You remember when I told you about my belt buckle, what it could do? Eddie was wearing it that night.”

“So he’s not dead? But his body-”

“It’s here, but I’m sure he went back in time. It’s a mindfuck, I know, but if there’s even a chance-”

“I understand. Give me a day or two, but I’ll come over. To Angie’s?”

“To Angie’s.” Succoria agreed, “But do you know numbers for any of the others? I tried to get Derrik but he’s with family and I don’t know anyone else’s.”

“I’ve got James’, Verne’s, and Sam’s.” Lauren said, “I can rattle ‘em off for you.”

“Go ahead.” In preparation for this, Succoria had found a pad or paper and a pen. As Lauren spoke the digits, adding on the special digits for Verne and Sam (seeing as they lived in different countries and all), Succoria couldn’t help but think about what her friends were doing right now. The only ones she ever kept in touch with anymore were Angie, Otis, and Derrik. She hadn’t talked to Lauren in two years, but that was more than she could say for the rest of the group. It made Surccoria think about whether or not they’d be willing to help her, after all this time. Were they still friends at all? It would be a question she’d have to think over at a later date. Once Lauren was done, the woman added, “Also, FYI, I’m not coming alone.”

“You have a boyfriend?” Succoria asked, surprised. Lauren had trouble having a steady relationship, but it wasn’t her fault.

“No, not exactly. I have a kid.”

“By yourself?”

“Yeah.” Lauren sounded tired, but not in the physical way, “You wouldn’t know how it feels.” Succoria thought back to the Tainted Coil, her other brothers and sisters and children.

“I think I would know, but it’s not my place to ask. Go back to bed and get some sleep.” A fond smile crossed Succoria’s face, “I remember how it was raising Eddie.”

“Then do you know the secret of how to get vomit out of clothes?”

“I do.”

“Then please, o wise one, share it with me before you go because I don’t know if I can take much more of this.” Lauren said. Succoria spoke to her friend, sharing the secret, and then Lauren was halfway to gathering up all the clothes in her apartment before they ended the call. It felt nice, getting to talk with her friends again, people she hadn’t heard from in years. Succoria only hoped they were all as willing as Lauren and Angie were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm basically making up a group of friends for Succoria and they're all gonna have their own backstories. Why do I do this to myself. And the Titan's Breath drink is something I made up myself. How hardcore can you get if an animal's blood is boiled to make a version of coffee?


	4. The Few, the Proud, and the Emotional

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter title is from Twenty One Pilots' song Heavydirtysoul.
> 
> Basically it's the entirety of the 'Exploited in the Bowels of Hell' mission. Half of it was written for a time before I got stuck and get to record my playthrough of the game to see the cutscenes I needed. And I realize that my version of Eddie is much more cautious and pacifist that canon Eddie, but I find it hard to believe that he'd be so confident in such a strange world. At least, at first.
> 
> Also, I realize things may be out of order and this is a bit of a change from the game, but this is how the chapter was written.

After the chores, Eddie set about doodling in his tour book. He wanted to keep tabs on everything he was learning about in this world and putting it all in here was a good place to start. He wrote down everything he knew so far, such as the Tab Slabs, and tried to illustrate them as best he could. When asked how many were still out there, Lita had shrugged.

“There have been a few we’ve seen.” she admitted, “But we have no idea how many are out there. Legends say there are ten in total, maybe more, but no one knows for sure.”

“Well, I think I’ve already found two of them.” Eddie said, “There was one at the Temple and the one just outside Bladehenge. Two down, eight to go!”

“Don’t get so cocky, Edward. Being able to wield such power can also be disastrous.” Eddie rolled his eyes.

“Is there anything else out there I should look out for?”

“A few things, here and there. No one knows the extent of what the Titans left behind, but if I were you, I’d be careful.”

“I guess.” Eddie wasn’t entirely convinced. He was being careful enough as it was. Ophelia had told him not to tell anyone else that he was half-demon and he was doing that. Not like there was much else he could do, seeing as he had no idea what could give him away. He’d experienced no powers, no mutations. Maybe he’d gotten the luck of the draw? He doubted it. He looked up from his doodling when he heard a tent flap swish. There was Lars, finally coming out. Eddie stood up.

“Finally ready for the day, my man?” he asked.

“Of course, Edward.” Lars nodded, “Having you been waiting here this whole morning?”

“No. I was helping the girls out with some chores earlier, but I wanted to ask if you had anything to shave with.” Eddie scratched his incoming beard for emphasis.

“Of course I do. Please, come in.” Eddie followed him in the tent. Besides the bed of furs, there was a flat shield in the corner, polished to a shine. Lars pointed to it as he took a knife from his vest, “I use this to be able to see what I need to shave every day. It used to be my father’s actually. I haven’t really needed to use it, though.”

“Yeah, you don’t seem the type to grow a beard.” Lars showed him how to cut it as close as he could without cutting himself (Eddie remembered his father trying to teach him the same thing but not succeeding, so Eddie had been using razors until now) and he was allowed to borrow the shield at any time. Eddie couldn’t be more grateful for Lars’ compassion. Once he felt ready, they stepped out of the tent as Eddie explained to Lars the plan of saving the men first.

“I see.” He shook his head, “I can see the reasoning, but I don’t think it’ll be easy.”

“C’mon, Lars!” Eddie grinned, “These chains Lionwhyte put on them ain’t gonna last forever if we keep at it!” Lars gave him a look.

“I’ll show you the mines, but I think you’ll find these chains very hard to break.”

* * *

After Eddie summoned the Druid Plow, Lars joined him in the car and they headed west. The girls were to do reconnaissance work at the Pleasure Tower while they freed the men. As Lars gave him directions, the blond explained details of the Crushing Pit.

“All the men there are given no tools, only using their heads to mine for the parts Lionwhyte wants. They’re unguarded because they have no use outside the Pit, with the exception of the Bouncers that hang around.” Lars shook his head, “I have no idea how you’ll convince them to join our cause.”

“Don’t be so pessimistic.” Eddie said, “I’ve got a few ideas, but I’ll need your help. You’re the leader of the rebellion, Lars, not me.”

“Perhaps, but you’re the one making this all possible.” Lars pointed to two towers, “There’s the entrance.” Eddie put on the brakes. If Lars hadn’t pointed it out, he would’ve never seen it. They didn’t stick up above the landscape like a lot of the other landmarks and stuff, but if this was where the Crushing Pit was, then it was time to get to work. They climbed out and Lars led him to an overhang. Eddie could feel the heat from here.

“They have to work in _that_?” he said, “It’s boiling hot!”

“They have no choice. They need to mine for the things the Titans left behind, and if they have to do it so close to lava, so be it.” Larrs pointed below, “Those with the giant hands are the Bouncers, the guards of this place. And over there is their boss.”

“The guy with all the spikes? Doesn’t look so tough.”

“Their giant hands aren’t just for show, Edward. I’ve seen what they can do to an unsuspecting person.” Lars shook his head and took out his sword, “Are you ready?”

“Yeah- Wait, hold on.” Eddie caught sight of something on the sword, “What’s with your sword?”

“Battle Cry?” Lars lifted it high and Eddie could see the sun shining through it, “It was my father’s-”

“Hold it right there.” Eddie took out Clementine, “Your sword’s got tablature on it.”

“What?”

“Notes. I can play them on my guitar. And you said it was called Battle Cry, right?”

“Yes, but-”

“Then maybe we can use these notes to help free the men.” Eddie strummed the notes quietly for a moment, trying to make sure he got them right. He put the guitar away and smiled when he was done. Lars lowered his sword.

“How do you expect music to help these people, who’ve been rejected by society?”

“Music helps everyone, my dude. And music always gives you hope.” Eddie said, “I should know, parts of society never liked me before I came here.”

“So your plan is to play ‘Battle Cry’ for the men and give them hope?” Lars smiled, “I like that plan.”

“Then let’s get to it.” They walked down the slope into the Crushing Pit together. As they got farther down, it grew hotter and hotter. Lars was sweating by the time they came to the first group of men toiling in the mines. And yet, even though Eddie knew it was hot, he didn’t seem to be bothered by it like Lars. He didn’t think much about it, though. He needed to get these guys out of here and kickstart the heart of the revolution. He took out Clementine. He’d play the music, then let Lars take over. He shredded into the solo with ease and after it finished, it rang through the small area. That caused him to wonder how it could still sound so loud without any amps, but Eddie chalked it up to the fact there was tons of magic in this place. The men beating on the walls stopped what they were doing and looked out from their perches. Eddie saw the large, bulging neck muscles they had and knew it must’ve come from only working with their heads to carve out the rock. He felt sorry for these guys, but at least they were about to be freed.

“Wha-? What is that sound!?”

“It's a devil screaming…”

“It's an angel singing!”

“It is the pounding of creation's hammer upon the anvil of time…”

“ _It's fucking awesome_!” Eddie and Lars smiled at their reactions. The roadie stepped back as the other stepped forward.

“That, my friends, is what we like to call Metal.” said Lars, “It should be the reason why you should bang your heads, _not_ for Lionwhyte.”

“Yeah! Screw this place!”

“Let’s get out of here!”

“Metal!” The men jumped off the scaffolding and gathered around Lars and Eddie. Lars was surprised at how easily these men turned to their cause. Maybe Eddie really did have a point about the power of music.

“Hey, hang on a sec.” Other guys came over to their small group. They looked like the regular men with their thick necks, but wore different clothes, styled in a way that made Eddie grimace. Lars frowned. He hoped they wouldn’t face resistance, but he was prepared. He allowed the new men to keep talking, “I know we’re all struggling right now, but I’m tellin’ ya, this is all gonna pay off really soon!”

“Yeah! Our Manager says that if we just work hard and produce a high-quality product, that we’ll be able to move up to cush guard jobs in the General’s Pleasure Tower!”

“There’s gonna be piles of chicks and booze and stuff!” Lars looked at his men. He wanted to speak, but he needed to know what they thought of going back to their old ‘job.’ The men on Lars’ side looked between Lars and Eddie and then their contemporaries.

“We’re with him.” Lars smiled. He had been willing to talk them to his side again, but there was no need to. The other group shook their heads.

“Hey man, sorry but we got a sweet gig here and we’re not about to let you grease bags ruin it!” As they ran for the guards, Lars took out his sword.

“Seems we’ll have to fight the Hair Metal Militia after all.”

“The ‘Hair Metal Militia?’ _Really_?” Eddie shook his head, “These people have no taste!”

“Lionwhyte was never very creative.” The gate to the next area opened and out stepped one of the Bouncers. The men gasped and went back, almost hiding behind Eddie and Lars. Eddie raised an eyebrow as Lars readied for a fight. The Bouncer growled.

“You guys look even uglier up close.” Eddie said.

“Not the time, Edward.” As the splinter group ran behind the Bouncer, saying they were going to sound the alarm, the gate slid closed and Eddie and Lars were stuck dealing with this mess. Eddie took out his guitar, even as he frowned. Lars remembered how he said he didn’t fight. It seemed like he and the men would have to fight by themselves.

“Come, men! If you wanna be free, you must fight for it!” Lars said. The men looked at one another. Slowly, they nodded and went to stand beside Lars. The blond man smiled, “Now charge!” They ran at the Bouncer. Eddie squawked. Lars ignored it. He was in command and he’d been raised on the battlefield. He knew what to do. As the men surrounded the Bouncer, making use of their absurdly thick skulls and strong neck muscles, Lars slashed at the Bouncer with his sword. He hadn’t noticed it before, but as he moved around the men to attack the Bouncer, he saw the cuffs on their wrists glowing orange, like they’d just been heated. But it didn’t seem to be hurting the men, so why were the cuffs glowing? He glanced back at Eddie, who was now playing the Battle Cry solo again. As he finished, a burst of light came out in waves and washed over the group. Lars tightened his grip on his sword. Just hearing the sound made him feel more powerful. The men’s cuffs also grew brighter, so maybe it was the music making them glow, a sign of how they grew in power? Eddie really had been right in saying how magic came from music. In no time at all they were able to down the Bouncer. They didn’t kill him, but they weakened him enough he wouldn’t be fighting any time soon. Even though it looked like the men wanted to go a little farther than just disabling the Bouncer. And when he was sure it was safe again, Eddie joined them.

“Be lucky we’ve got a rebellion on our hands!” said one of the men to the Bouncer.

“Else you’d be dead right now!”

“Charlie’s gonna get his revenge, you just wait!”

“Easy, men.” Lars said, “But you see how, when working together, you managed to accomplish this? If we can free the rest of you, then it’s almost assured we’ll win our freedom back.”

“Hell yeah!” The men nodded vigorously.

“But what’s the name of this rebellion, if we’re being a part of it?” asked one of the smarter ones. Lars frowned. He hadn’t really thought about it.

“Ironheade, named for you guys.” Eddie said, “And there’s an ‘e’ at the end, so they know we’re not messing around!” The men cheered.

“Really?” Lars asked. He liked the name, but he was still amazed at how quickly Eddie had come up with it.

“Hey, it works, don’t judge.” Eddie shrugged, “Now, how are we gonna command these guys in the field?”

“What do you mean?” This was where Lars began to grow unsure.

“If we’re gonna be fighting, we need signals so people know what to do and where to go.” When Lars gave him a confused look, Eddie turned to the men.

“Listen here, Headbangers.” That was what he’d begun calling them in his head, “We’re gonna do a quick rundown on signals before we head on, so you guys know what I’m asking you to do in the middle of a fight. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir!” They nodded. Lars watched in fascination as Eddie took control of the situation with ease.

“When I do this,” Eddie held up the Separator, “it means to follow me. Got it?” When the Headbangers nodded, Eddie smiled, “Then let’s do some practice.” As Eddie moved, the Headbangers followed him. Lars did as well as they moved to the yellow Lionwhyte statue, where the Headbangers quickly demolished it. Eddie commented on it with, “Alright, yeah. Kill it. You've earned yourself some destroy. Enjoy.” With the hatred they held for the general, Lars could tell that the Headbangers would be invaluable to Ironheade. After they destroyed the statue, Eddie prepared the next command, where he held up his empty left fist, “Let’s do this next one opposite style. This gesture means _don’t_ follow me, okay? You stay put and defend this hallowed ground. Let’s put it into practice!” After making the gesture again, Eddie ran over to the purple statue. No one followed. Eddie returned, “Good job, guys! Finally, I’ve got one more command to teach you. When I do this,” Eddie made a gesture with his right hand again, this time where the pointer and pinky fingers were out, “it means you destroy anything that I’m pointing at. We’ll try it out by mixing things up a little. I’ll stay here, and when I do the signal, you guys go ahead and destroy the remaining statues. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir!”

“Then everything in that direction must _die_!” Eddie made the pronged gesture and, with gleeful cheers, the Headbangers ran over to the indicated statue and began to pummel it with their heads.

“Very effective.” Lars commented, “I can see how this would be helpful in the chaos of battle.” When the Headbangers finished destroying the purple statue, Eddie gestured again for them to go destroy the blue one.

“Thanks.” Eddie shrugged. After the Headbangers finished demolishing the final statue, they returned with cheers.

“Lionwhyte sucks!”

“Death to Lionwhyte!”

“I _hate_ statues!” Eddie stepped back again. He’d done his duty, now it was time for the leader to be in charge, not the roadie. Lars looked to him, then back at the Headbangers.

“Well done, men.” Lars said, “But if we’re to fight the real Lionwhyte, we’ll need to free the rest of the Headbangers. Are you all with me?”

“Yes sir!”

“Then destroy that barrier!” Lars gave the Charge command at the barrier and the Headbangers gleefully ran towards it.

“See? Giving commands ain’t so hard when you know what you’ve gotta do.” Eddie said as they rushed to join the excited Headbangers.

“Yes, but I never would’ve come up with the commands if not for you. Are you ready to fight, Edward?” At this, Eddie looked unsure and nervous.

“As much as I wanna do that, I think I’ll sit the rest of this out.” Eddie shook his head. Lars frowned.

“You were the one who freed these men, Edward. Why won’t you take credit?”

“I’m a roadie, Lars. We take credit for nothing. We just fix the issues behind the scenes. And I’m not a fighter, how many times do I have to say it?” Lars and Eddie stared at each other. The Headbangers were almost through the barrier. Lars sighed.

“At least play Battle Cry for the other Headbangers to recruit them.”

“That I can do.” Eddie turned away, only to be stopped by Lars’ voice.

“You told me roadies protect their band. What does that make Ironheade?” Eddie gave no response. He didn’t have a chance to, as the barrier blocking the rest of the area was finally torn down. Lars gave him one last look before they ran with the Headbangers again into the main area of the Crushing Pit. As Lars peeked around the corner, he could see the Gyre, spinning slowly as other Headbangers beat at it to keep it moving. And above all that were the speakers.

 _“Faster!”_ said the speakers, _“Keep moving! No fainting on the Gyre!”_ They echoed all across the Crushing Pit. Lars searched for the source of the voice and found the heavily-armored Bouncer standing on a platform above the Gyre. He turned back to the small group.

“Edward, start playing the solo to gather more Headbangers. And as for the four of you, we need to defeat him to shut down this place.” Lars pointed at the Bouncer.

“That’s Mittens. He won’t be easy.” said one of the men.

“Nastiest Bouncer around.” said another.

“If you want your freedom, then facing your fears and defeating them is the first step!” Lars nodded to Eddie. The roadie took out his guitar and played the same solo as before. Immediately it attracted the attention of more than just nearby Headbangers. The rogues they had encountered before had made short work of their promise to sound the alarm, as Bouncers zeroed in on their location and came for a fight.

“Follow me to victory!” Lars held up his sword, just as Eddie had done with the Separator. He worked with the Headbangers to fight the incoming Bouncers as Eddie hung back, letting off blasts of lightning from his guitar when needed.

 _“What does that make Ironheade?”_ Lars had a point. But Eddie wasn’t a fighter. He’d made that clear, but look at what he was doing now. Ironheade wasn’t supposed to mean anything to him even though he was the one that gave them their name, the name of the rebellion, the _band_. No, a roadie’s job was to protect his band and Ironheade was his fucking band. That helped ease his thoughts about fighting these guys. Eddie switched from his guitar to the Separator. If he was going to protect his band, he had to get right into the fray of things. He worked with Lars as they made their way down the slope, closer to the Gyre. The Headbangers made short work of the blockade and soon enough they were fighting off forces around the three pillars keeping the Gyre up.

 _“What?”_ Eddie looked up at Mittens, _“Trustees! We are under attack! Crush the intruders and their band of traitors! Pound them to a thick paste!”_ Immediately more Bouncers and rogue Headbangers ran to join the fight. They were getting battered. As Eddie helped cut down a Bouncer, he thought back to one of Ophelia’s lessons earlier that day. During the chores, she’d asked him why they hadn’t tried Double-Teaming at the Temple. When Eddie had given her a confused look, Ophelia explained that Double-Teaming was a skill she’d picked up from her parents, where working together strengthened both parties. Everyone had their own special Double-Team at Bladehenge, it wasn’t just her.

“Sounds like the power of friendship.” Eddie had said. Then Ophelia had him practice Double-Teaming with her, to show him how powerful the skill was. And in the present, Eddie wasn’t sure why he’d thought of it, but it could work here. There was no way he could throw the Headbangers like he could with Ophelia, but maybe… He held up his hand, making the ‘Charge’ gesture but keeping it aloft.

“Headbangers! Let’s form ourselves a mosh pit!” At first the men gave Eddie a confused glance but quickly followed along, trusting him to get them out of this. They gathered around him in a circle, banging their heads, and this action quickly threw off many attackers. Only when Eddie lowered his arm did they stop and it left Lars somewhat impressed.

“I see you’ve learned how to Double-Team.” he commented when there was a lull in the fighting.

“Ophelia taught me, before we came over.” Eddie smiled, “Pretty wicked.” Both of them looked up at the pissed-off Mittens when he began to speak again.

 _“Traitors! Animals! I’d rather see you dead than free!”_ There was a moment where he seemed indecisive with his anger, then he gestured to the giant machine, _“CRIPPLE THE GRINDING GYRE! Burn the ungrateful man-cogs!”_

“Uh oh.” Eddie said. Frightened murmuring was spreading through the Headbangers’ ranks, but it was also full of determination not to let their fellow men fall into the lava.

“Edward, take half the men and guard one of the supports.” Lars commanded, “The rest of us will stay here.” Eddie nodded. He ran to the Iron Cross support with half the Headbangers as Lars and the others guarded the Lightning Bolt. Quickly a force of one Bouncer and four rogue Headbangers headed to attack the undefended Skull support but Eddie took his troops around to bash at them. After that attack was deflected, a Bouncer took one support while the rogues took another. Lars and his men quickly went to defend the unguarded support as Eddie and his troops defended themselves. Their two-pronged defense was quickly making short work of the forces being sent their way. But Eddie knew that this was no way to win the fight. Spotting some stairs, Eddie quickly realized what they had to do to win.

“Keep the guys on the Gyre safe! I’ll deal with Mittens!” Eddie yelled to Lars. He didn’t wait for a response, heading for the stairs. If they were going to win, Mittens had to be taken down. It wasn’t long before he was at the top, on the same platform as Mittens. The Bouncer hadn’t noticed his presence yet, growling over the losses his forces were taking. Eddie noted the rock buckets that were passing overhead. If he wasn’t able to take down the Bouncer the regular way, those would help. With a roar of rage, Mittens suddenly pounded his fists.

 _“ENOUGH!”_ Clearly he’d reached the end of his patience. However, upon turning around, he spotted Eddie. The roadie grimaced. He’d hoped to figure out how to take Mittens down without fighting him, but now he had no choice. Mittens glared, _“You think you’ve killed them all, don’t you? Well, you forgot my favorites, the managers. The ones who keep all the other workers in line, the only two I know I can always count on.”_ Mittens lifted his fists, _“Fear and Pain!”_ Eddie was tempted to snort. Mittens wasn’t very bright if the embossed knuckles were anything to go by. So maybe he could use it to his advantage. Eddie readied Clementine. Until he got a good idea of how to attack, staying distant was his best bet. He started off with lightning, which Mittens blocked, but it left him vulnerable under the rock buckets. Eddie loosed them with an Earthshaker. They spilled their contents onto Mittens, damaging him, but were soon rightened. It would take a few more hits of that before Eddie could take Mittens down. But he had to move quickly, as Mittens wasn’t slow like the other Bouncers. Eddie dodged again before shocking Mittens a second time, once he was under the rock buckets. Mitten blocked it again, but it left him open to attack from above. Another Earthshaker quickly damaged Mittens more, but the Bouncer kept coming. This time, Eddie was unable to dodge and was hit full-force by one of Mittens’ fists. Lars hadn’t been kidding about how those things hurt. Eddie staggered to his feet, near the edge of the platform hanging over the lava. Mittens grinned through his bleeding wounds. Eddie had to end this fight now. He waited in place for Mittens to approach. The Bouncer walked forward slowly, sure he was about to win this fight and crush the rebellion. But Eddie had a trick up his sleeve.

“Clearly you didn’t do too well in school, if you think F-E-E-R and P-A-N-E are how you’re supposed to spell those words.” he goaded. Mittens growled.

 _“All guards, Code Red.”_ he said, then struck out at Eddie. The roadie moved out of the way but held out a foot. The Bouncers were very top-heavy and if he could just give Mittens a little trip… The Bouncer tried to right himself but his foot caught on Eddie’s outstretched leg and he fell over the side. He landed on the Gyre, but the rotating shafts quickly pushed him into the lava. Eddie stared at the burning body. That was a fate he wished on no one, but this was a rebellion. Sometimes you had to break a few things if you wanted to win. Eddie moved away from the ledge and headed down to join Lars. The headset had flown free from Mittens just before his death, so maybe Eddie could use it to bring in reinforcements from the rest of the mine. They’d need it if they were going to take down the incoming Bouncers. Code Red was likely Mittens’ last line of defense, especially if it involved the rest of the Bouncers from across the huge mine. But if he could use the headset to send Battle Cry across the speakers, he might get the rest of the men in the mines onboard. The Headbangers were gathered with Lars now, near where the headset had landed, and so Eddie headed their way. A rumbling could be heard and everyone was anxious.

“Edward?” Lars asked.

“No time to explain. Let me get to that headset!” Quickly the Headbangers parted for him. It was propped on a rock and Eddie took out Clementine again. His fingers rested on the chords as the metal doors banged open, Bouncers pouring in from other parts of the mine. But as soon as Battle Cry was done, the Headbangers on the Gyre and across the mine converged on them, helping to fight off the Bouncers. Soon enough, their enemies were dead. Finally, they were free. The Headbangers cheered as Lars and Eddie moved to the stairs so they could look over the area. Already the troops were ransacking the area, tearing apart Lionwhyte statues and gathering up all the supplies they could find.

“No demons so far.” Eddie mused as they watched the Headbangers share beers they’d raided from the mine’s stores.

“For now. The rebellion isn't big enough to cause problems. But the bigger we get, the more attention we’ll attract.” Lars’ gaze moved over the celebrating Headbangers, “This is only the start.”

“Yeah, but we’ll also attract more people to our cause.” Eddie put an arm around Lars’ shoulders, “Trust me with this.” His eyes also scanned the area before seeming to spot something, where he left Lars alone, “I think I see some of those rogue guys trying to escape. Give me a sec.” Eddie left him alone. Lars looked around the area but saw none of the tacky outfits worn by the rogues. He soon spotted Eddie and watched as the other raced toward a wall off to the side, near one of the doors to the rest of the mines. There was a poster but Lars couldn’t see any details from this distance. Eddie then began taking it off the wall. Lars frowned. He didn’t know why Eddie was tearing a poster off the wall, but he seemed very adamant about it. And then Eddie was rushing over to throw the poster in the lava. Clearly he wanted no one to see it. And in all the celebration chaos, who would’ve noticed? It made Lars wonder. Was Eddie hiding something? If so, what did he have to hide? Lars wouldn’t say anything for now. He trusted Eddie and he hoped that eventually Eddie would return that trust by explaining the mysterious poster. It wasn’t long after that that they began leading the Headbangers back to Bladehenge, dragging along all the supplies they found or special things belonging to the men. Lars was already thinking of how many tents they may need for the new troops and it was giving him a headache. Tactics of battle he could handle, but numbers were never his strong point. That was where Eddie came in, he hoped. For now, they just had to get these men to Bladehenge.

* * *

While she was unable to get Verne except for voicemail, Succoria was able to get Sam and James. While it took a toll on her phone bill to contact Sam, Succoria was glad that Sam was at least answering. Verne hadn’t exactly left the gang on good terms, last time Succoria saw him. Hopefully one of the others could convince Verne to come back.

“Susan? How are you?” Sam asked as soon as the phone was answered.

“Good, but how-?”

“Caller ID. What is it?”

“Listen, Sam, I was wondering if you would come back to Angie’s. We need to get the squad back together.”

“Because of Eddie, right?” Sam was always a step ahead and perceptive, “You wanna see if you can bring him home.”

“Yeah, his belt-”

“I saw the concert. You think his belt sent him back in time somehow. But what about his body?”

“I know, but I’m sure he can be brought back. He’s not dead, just in a different time.”

“I wish you weren’t so stubborn.” Sam sighed, “I’ll come.”

“Thanks. And could you maybe contact Verne? I know we didn’t exactly leave on good terms, last time we were together.” Out of everyone in the group, Verne had gotten along the worst with Succoria. But she knew that _everyone_ had to be involved if she wanted to get her son back. Sam sighed again.

“I’ll see what I can do. You’re lucky my passport is still good.” Succoria smiled.

“Thank you so much.” A hand tugged through her long black hair. Sam hummed.

“Don’t thank me just yet.” After the call ended, Succoria spun James’ number. She’d forgotten to ask Sam if there were any numbers they knew for the others, but she’d ask later. He picked up on the second ring.

“Hello?”

“James, it’s me.”

“Susie, is that you?” That was the nickname he’d given her, despite how much Succoria despised it. Originally she’d entertained the idea of smiting him for him but she’d mellowed out over the years. All that was left was just the burning urge to smack him for it, “Are you still using that old dinosaur?” By ‘dinosaur,’ James was referring to Succoria’s rotary phone. It had been a leftover from when she and Riggnarok had bought their first house and from their knowledge of the Titans from their time, they were able to keep it in working order. Though it had been replaced by new technology when she and her slaves had arrived, Succoria held a fondness for the phone. Eddie had goodnaturedly teased her about it to no end, as had her friends when they first discovered her use of the ‘ancient’ phone.

“Of course I am.”

“Girl, you need an _upgrade_.” James said. Succoria rolled her eyes.

“I could just as well hang up, y’know.”

“I do, but you called me for a reason, didn’t ‘cha? If you called for a friendly talk, that would’ve started several years ago.” James’ tone, though light, was tinged with bitterness. Succoria didn’t blame him.

“I wanted to ask if you could come to Angie’s.”

“And why should I do that?”

“I need to get Eddie back.” There was silence on the other line for a few moments.

“Susie...”

“Don’t tell we he’s dead. He was wearing my belt.” Succoria closed her eyes.

“You could be wrong.” James said.

“Don’t you think I haven’t thought about that?” She went to sleep thinking about how she could be wrong, that Eddie was really dead and calling everyone back was a huge mistake.

“Susan.” If he had been there, James surely would’ve put a hand on her shoulder. He’d always acted as somewhat of a brother figure to her in their time together, so to listen to her was a testament of how willing he was to put his bitterness aside, “I know you’re stubborn. But asking me to come back? Are you sure?”

“I’m asking everyone to come back. Even if we can’t get to Eddie, I could at least try to fix things.” James hummed.

“You could. Doesn’t mean it’d work, Suz.” Another nickname he’d given her, another smack she owed him later, “But I’m willing to take a chance.”

“Thank you. That’s as much as I could ask of you.”

“I don’t think we can help Eddie, Susie, but I’ll come.”

“It’s _Susan_ , you halfwit.”

“I know. As much as you may not have missed anyone enough to talk to them, I surely missed you.” He hung up on her. Succoria stared at the receiver. Even though they had once been friends in the beginning, after they moved apart, she never thought they’d care enough to come back, let alone respond to her calls. Verne was proof of the anger he still held at her, at what she’d done. She knew it’d be hard to contact anyone, but at least she’d gotten to a few people. And James still cared, after all this time. Succoria allowed tears to gather in her eyes. She moved away from the phone as it rested in its niche in the hallway and moved to the kitchen, trying to wipe away her tears. In the beginning of her time here, she’d despised tears. But Riggnarok and her friends showed her that it wasn’t a weakness, not like what she’d been taught. It was okay to cry every now and then. So she took the chance to let out her tears that people she’d fallen away from still cared about her, so many years later. Almost at the kitchen, she was forced to stop as she bumped into the doorway. There was a small crash. Quickly rubbing away her tears, she looked back. One of the photos that had hung on the wall had fallen. She went to pick it up, careful of the broken glass.

It was a picture taken a few years ago, for Eddie’s 32nd birthday. It was also the day right before Riggnarok’s death. It had been hard on Eddie when his birthday came around after that, but Succoria knew how he’d try to keep happy, if only for her sake. He had his arm around her shoulders, towering over her a little like his father and almost swallowing her up in the embrace. He was grinning as she smiled, both staring right at the camera. He’d only started growing in that thing he called a ‘soul patch’ on his chin and was wearing her shirt and belt buckle. And, though it had been his birthday, he’d been on his best behavior for her. Succoria could remember, when he’d been old enough, he’d taken full advantage of alcohol and got as drunk as he could sometimes, being himself and something he wasn’t at the same time. Those had been some hard years for her and Riggnarok (She, once Emperor of the demons, couldn’t get him to listen to reason ever since he was a toddler), especially when Eddie was out on the road, but for some reason he’d started cutting back (almost to the point of going clean) a decade after that. Maybe because he saw how Riggnarok’s health had slowly declined and thought getting rid of the raging alcoholic was the best present his father could ask for. Succoria felt pride swelling in her chest. Eddie wasn’t a perfect person, but he had a good heart. It just took a while for him to get on the right path. Succoria put the picture back on the wall, noting to get a new pane of glass for it later.

“I’ll bring you home. I promise.”


	5. Cry of the Banshee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think I need to explain the chapter title, but it's Cry of the Banshee by Brocas Helm and is kind of a dead giveaway about what the chapter is about.
> 
> I know I said that the story would focus on the everyday lives of Ironheade at points, but I know that 'Exploited in the Bowels of Hell' and 'Lair of the Metal Queen' were missions likely in the same day. But now that both are out of the way, things will slow down a little. There's also not a Succoria part in this chapter because not every chapter will have her adventures in trying to get Eddie back. But her parts will return soon!
> 
> I also wrote this chapter this morning. I feel accomplished.

As they hiked back into Bladehenge, Eddie noted that Lita and Ophelia hadn’t returned. He hoped they were okay. As it was, he and Lars had to help these men get settled in. In the rebellion in the mines, they hadn’t had any casualties, as astonishing as it sounded. They’d gotten out of the Crushing Pit as fast as they could and back to Bladehenge. Eddie felt sorry for the bodies of their enemies, but there had been no time for that. If they’d waited much longer, he was sure they might’ve been overtaken by investigating forces and then they’d never get out of the Crushing Pit alive. Eddie didn’t have time to worry about the girls as he took inventory of their supplies and how many men they’d rescued. It had to be in the hundreds, at the very least. Bladehenge itself wasn’t very big to start with, but they’d have to make do. The most important tents were located at the bottom, near the water source, such as Eddie’s own tent and Lars’. There were two other levels to Bladehenge, but did they have enough space inside the monument to accommodate all these men? If he put them in groups of four to a tent, it could work. They’d have to expand the storage tent, however. It made Eddie think of possibly digging into the ground to make more space for the troops. It could work, sort of like vertical barracks or something. But that’d have to be arranged after they set up a supply chain to keep the food and materials coming in. Eddie gave the Headbangers instructions to build their own tents on the two upper levels, four to a tent, and left them to it. He’d been told on the way back that they’d been forced to make their own scaffolds to work in the mine and so he trusted them to be able to set up their own tents. He opened the map Ophelia gave him and joined Lars at the northern entrance to Bladehenge.

“Are the men settled in?” asked the bare-chested man. Eddie grunted.

“As settled as they can be. We’ve got a steady supply of water, but I don’t think we have enough materials for tents or enough food for our men.” Eddie shared the map with Lars, “Any place you know of that would have plenty of food?”

“There only two.” Lars pointed at places on the map, where the Pleasure Tower was and at the strange-looking mountain, “The Pleasure Tower and Thunderhorn both have thriving populations, so they likely have plenty of food to spare.”

“Thunderhorn?”

“It’s home to the Kill Master and his Thunderhogs. Don’t let the name fool you, he’s taken an oath to never harm anyone. He and his men are healers that we go to sometimes for help if we need it.” Lars looked at Eddie, “Like yourself, they’ve also discovered the magic of music, but theirs has very different properties from your own. While you destroy things with fire and lightning, their music heals others. But they also keep to themselves most of the time and send us off the mountain if we don’t have a good reason for asking for help. If you want food from them, it’ll take a lot of effort.”

“Well, until we get a supply chain up and running, we might have to ask them to help us.” Eddie jerked a thumb over his shoulder, “There are over two hundred men we rescued from the mines. We’re lucky if we last the week without rationing.” Lars’ eyes widened.

“You’re not serious?!”

“Dead serious.” Eddie rolled up the map, “But I won’t go over there just yet. It’s getting late in the day and we need to make sure everyone’s settling in. There’s barely enough space inside Bladehenge as it is.” Lars nodded.

“Right. I’ll climb up to the top of the sword and see how things are going.” Lars moved off. Eddie stared at the sword. If they didn’t have enough space, there was always something they could try that he’d only heard of-

“EDWARD!” That was Lita. He whipped around. There she was, helping Ophelia walk. Both looked in bad shape. He ran to meet them and was sure Lars wasn’t far behind. He had to have heard Lita’s shout too, hadn’t he? After Eddie reached them, he could see that Lita only had the smallest of wounds and that most of the blood on her came from Ophelia.

“Such an _idiot_!” Lita was saying, but Eddie’s focus was on the other woman. Ophelia’s body was gored in various places. It was a wonder how she was still alive.

“Ophelia!” There was Lars now. He took her from Lita and helped her to the ground, likely where she’d be more comfortable. Eddie turned to the blond woman.

“What happened?” he demanded, “All you were doing was checking out the Pleasure Tower!”

“Ophelia roped me into a crazy idea that’s trying to kill her!” Lita snapped. They turned back to Lars and Ophelia as the darker-haired woman stirred.

“You didn’t try to free the girls too, did you?” asked Lars. Ophelia smiled.

“They’re...already free.” she managed. She was too weak to say more. Lars took her into his arms and stood.

“I’ll take her to the Kill Master.” Before he could start forward, however, Lita blocked his way.

“Lars, no! Lionwhyte knows about us now, we need to lay low. I’m sure we have supplies here for her, and if we need to, Edward can take his ‘car’ to ask the Thunderhogs for help!”

“Out of my way.” Lars’ tone of voice wasn’t something Eddie had heard before, but Lita clearly understood it. She moved and then Lars was running, but Eddie stopped him.

“Hold on!” He took out Clementine, “We’ll get there faster this way.” Lars nodded. As soon as the Druid Plow had arrived, Eddie climbed in and Lars put Ophelia in the passenger seat. There was only space for two people, unfortunately. Lars said, “Get to Thunderhorn and take her to the top. See what you can do to convince the Kill Master. We’ll meet you there.” Eddie only nodded. He put the car in gear and then they were zooming off. He had a vague idea of where Thunderhorn was and had to stop sometimes to check the map, but eventually he came to the entrance. Though the things hanging from the metal strings creeped him out a little, there was no resistance as he drove up. It took some sharp turns and swerves, but eventually he came to the top. He was awed by the elegance and shivered at the sight of the giant metallic spiders skittering about, but he had no time to focus on it. He climbed out of the car as the Thunderhogs stared. They hadn’t moved from their perches after his arrival and Eddie wondered how they managed to be unfazed by it.

“Which one of you is the Kill Master?” he demanded. The man in the cowboy hat sighed, sitting on the huge skull in the middle.

“Didn’t you see the signs? We don’t like visitors up here.” He gave another sigh, “What do you want?”

“This woman needs help.” Eddie took Ophelia out of the passenger seat, “I was told you could help her.”

“And why should I do that?” The Kill Master didn’t move out of his reclined position.

“Because it’s the right thing to do?!” Eddie hissed. He laid her in the strange bed that was in the center of the clearing, “She and I are part of a revolution that’s trying to stop Lionwhyte.”

“Oh, you’re fighting Lionwhyte?” This got the Kill Master’s attention. He sat up, “Why didn’t you say so? I hate that bastard.” He got to his feet. It was at that moment that Lars and Lita finally arrived. Eddie was surprised they were able to come so quickly but he didn’t question it. The Kill Master went to strumming the large strings in front of him and as the music washed over them, Eddie quickly realized that the music was different not because of who was playing it but because it was a bass guitar instead of a regular one. Did thicker strings equal healing powers instead of destructive ones? That would have to be something to think about later. Ophelia was still bleeding. Eddie glared.

“You said you could help her!”

“I tried. My strings aren’t heavy enough, with her being so close. What you need are the Metal Queen’s strings.” Eddie looked up. He paled at the icon of a gargantuan metal spider hanging behind Kill Master’s seat, “She’s the only one that can make strings thick enough to save your girl. But we don’t go into her lair anymore… Lest she bite us in half, suck out our innards, and lay her eggs in our eye sockets.” Eddie paled even further. Lars and Lita, however, were unfazed by this.

“I’m going.” Lars made to leave before Lita stopped him again. She seemed very reluctant to do so, however.

“Then you’ll both be dead. And what good is that?” Lita seemed saddened as she said, “You have to let her go.”

“Absolutely not! Someone has to get those strings and Ophelia needs them!” He glared at his sister, “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Lita gasped and Eddie began to back away, sensing a family squabble. As they fought, mentioning something about ‘Tear Drinkers,’ Eddie knew he couldn’t let it go on. Someone had to go get those strings and it looked like it would have to be him. He hopped back in the Druid Plow and headed back down the mountain, nervous. One of the Thunderhogs had helpfully pointed out the Metal Queen’s Lair on the map before he left, so there was no way he could get lost. He wished he could, though. It was an understatement to say he didn’t like spiders. And having to face a huge one like the Metal Queen? That was just asking for a panic attack. But Ophelia was dying. If he didn’t do something, then it would be too late. His grip on the wheel tightened as he pulled up to the entrance. There was Tab Slab here and he made sure to copy down the new solo before he ventured closer. He’d need all the help he could get. There was a Thunderhog waiting, likely the guardian to this place. Eddie strode up, trying to put out a confident air.

“I’m heading into the lair of the giant spider queen. Anybody got a problem with that?” He half hoped the Thunderhog would try to stop him, but there was nothing, only a stare. He steeled himself, “My friend is dying! I’m heading in there now!” The Thunderhog probably thought Eddie was mad for doing this but he clearly wasn’t going to try and stop the roadie. Eddie tried again, now even more nervous, “You sure you don’t wanna talk me out of it? No?” Silence. “Okay...” Eddie walked through the doors. He tried not to imagine that they were closing behind him with finality. It didn’t help that night had fallen by this time, making it hard to see in the lair. He ran into the lair, spotting metallic spiders crawling across supports and chains that arched over the pathway. Eddie shivered. He nearly froze up when he saw the cocoons of what he could only assume were human remains, but he pushed on. He couldn’t dawdle, not with Ophelia’s life on the line. Metal webs draped across the pathway as he ventured farther inside. He tried not to imagine them suddenly falling and slicing him to bits because he was sure they were unnaturally sharp. But then the spiders started coming. They were about the size of large dogs and hissed menacingly. Eddie tried to imagine them as said dogs, to help not let his fear get in the way, and he was able to slice through them when they got too close. When no more came after him he continued on his way. He yelped when he felt one jump on his from behind and he threw it off, frying it with lightning before chopping it to bits. His nerves were going to be so fucked after this. But as soon as he stepped too close to some of the hanging bodies, they burst open and tiny versions of the spiders poured out, heading straight for him.

“AH! FUCK FUCK FUCK!” He unleashed an Earthshaker but it didn’t get rid of all the tiny spiders, which kept coming for him. They jumped on his clothes and in his hair and he screamed, “GET OFF!” He played another Earthshaker through the burning strings and it got rid of the rest of the spiders. He held his hot guitar, shaking and uncaring about how it burned his fingers. Eddie swallowed.

“Ophs needs me. Ophs needs me...” He murmured the mantra as he ventured deeper into the lair. After a few more encounters with large and small spiders, he finally found himself in a clearing, likely the heart of the lair. On the other side he could see the huge strings that could save Ophelia. But where was the Metal Queen? He looked around, but there was no sign of her. Eddie was sure she was there, however. But maybe, if she didn’t show herself, he could get out of there. Nodding in hope, Eddie ran across the clearing and began to carefully cut the strings, not wanting any snapback. But then he heard the sounds of something like a robot moving behind him. He didn’t want to turn and see it, but he had no choice. Slowly, he looked behind him. There was the biggest and most frightening metal spider he’d ever seen. He was frozen in fear until she screeched at him and then he was moving, not wanting to get cut to shreds by her legs. It was the Metal Queen and she was pissed. Her eyes turned red in rage as she attacked him, but Eddie jumped out of the way. His mind was panicking but he tamped down on it. If Ophelia was to survive, he had to get those strings. He yelped when she spat something silver at him and he dodged. Glancing back, it ate right through the rock it touched and he gulped.

“Never said she could spit _acid_ …” Eddie muttered. She then revved up for another attack, but opened part of her carapace. It gave Eddie the opening he needed. He shocked her and then came closer to attack the area, but she quickly threw him off. She was even angrier now and moved to the web in the back. While only a few strings had been cut before she interrupted him, it sagged under the Metal Queen’s weight. She then screeched again and quickly some of the dog-sized spiders came forward. Eddie whimpered.

“I’m _so_ gonna need therapy after this.” He cut through the spiders and the Metal Queen got back on the ground. She didn’t attack, however, loosing some of the tiny spiders from her thorax. Eddie wanted to cry but tightened his grip on Clementine. He had to keep an eye on the Metal Queen as the tiny ones came closer, but once they were close enough, an Earthshaker quickly took them out. She screeched at him again. After spitting acid at him and trying to cut him with her legs, she exposed herself again. As Eddie shocked her, he tried to grin.

“Not very bright, huh?” The Metal Queen shook him off again. This time, upon returning to the web, she called eight spiders to her aid. He took them out and added an Earthshaker in the mix to keep them from surrounding him. The Metal Queen didn’t change tactics and it allowed Eddie to finally shock her into submission. He couldn’t kill her, not if he wanted the spiders to survive (she was the Queen of course, they wouldn’t survive without her), but it had been a long fight.

“That took _way_ too much time!” Eddie growled to himself, “If I’m gonna get these to the Kill Master in time I’ve gotta book it!” As he cut down the rest of the strings, he looked around, trying to figure out how he would get out of the lair the fastest. He quickly spotted various parts for a vehicle, similar to what had been in the Temple, and he began to cobble them together into a quick ride. The Druid Plow was too wide to fit through the narrow path but this Trike he was building was not. Once it was complete he loaded the strings on and started it up. Like the Druid Plow it had no gas tank but still started, its single headlight cutting through the darkness of the night. He revved the Trike, “Well, it ain’t pretty, but let’s hope it’s fast!” He kicked off and the Trike ran well, zooming out of the lair with ease. He drove past the lone Thunderhog by the entrance and kicked it into high gear. There was no idea how much time Ophelia had left. He drove it up the slopes of Thunderhorn and put it into a skidding stop when he reached the top. Without prompting the Thunderhogs grabbed the strings and helped the Kill Master string them across his board. Eddie climbed off the Trike and bit his lip. Was he too late?

“Nice. Thick as a baby’s arm.” Kill Master praised. He cracked his knuckles and began to play. Eddie’s eyes widened as a soft golden glow covered Ophelia. Just as KM finished playing, the woman opened her eyes. Seeing as she was turned away from Eddie, the first one she saw was Lars. She smiled.

“Lars… I can always count on you, can’t I?” Eddie was too relieved to even think about speaking up against that. And as soon as the relief washed over him, so did the repressed fear. He put a hand to his head and Lita laid a hand on his arm, concerned.

“Edward?”

“Ophelia’s okay. That’s- that’s good...”

“Eddie? Eddie!” Ophelia’s voice was the last thing he heard before everything went black.

* * *

_“They’re not scary, Eddie.” Roger was saying. Eddie was cowering behind his father’s leg as his mother released the spider he’d discovered in the bathroom. Neither were afraid of the tiny creature, even as Eddie was left petrified by its creepiness, eight eyes and legs, the way it could hide anywhere and wait for you. Eddie shook his head._

_“They’re ugly and scary and wanna eat me!”_

_“They won’t eat you. At least, these won’t.” said Susan. Eddie yelped. He saw his father give her a look. Susan huffed._

_“There are no spiders big enough to eat you.” said Roger._

_“Except the metal ones that are big as dogs and spin strings for guitars.” Susan said. Eddie whimpered._

_“Now he’s gonna have nightmares tonight.” Roger sighed. Susan shrugged._

_“Did I say they were real?”_

_“You didn’t have to.” Roger lifted Eddie into his arms, “C’mon, let’s get away from your mother and her scary stories.” Eddie just buried his face in his father’s shoulder. He could squish bugs like the other kids but spiders scared the crap out of him. Roger took him upstairs to his bed and tucked him in. Eddie didn’t sleep with a night light, unafraid of the dark, but Roger would keep the hallway light on and crack Eddie’s door. Just in case. After tucking Eddie in, he kissed his son’s forehead._

_“Your mother was making things up.” he said, “Those spiders aren’t real.”_

_“You sure?” Eddie whimpered. Roger nodded._

_“I’m sure.” He left his son alone, turning out the room’s light before he slipped out. Eddie buried into the covers. His father had to be right, the metal spiders were only made up, right? Right. He closed his eyes. He froze when he heard his closet door creak open. His eyes snapped open and he looked to the closet. There was nothing there. He looked around. All he could see was the light from the hallway, peeking through his cracked door. He could now hear a humming sound, like that from his father’s car. It was coming from above him. He lifted his head and his eyes widened. He opened his mouth the scream just as the metal spider struck._

“AH!” Eddie bolted upright, “Ah ah ah ah...” He panted, shaking. He looked around. He wasn’t in his room anymore, but neither was he still at Thunderhorn. He seemed to be back in his tent. He jumped when the tent flap was flung open. It was Ophelia.

“Eddie! You’re awake!” She hugged him. He hugged back. She squeaked and squirmed, “Too...Tight!”

“Sorry.” He eased up on the hug. Eventually she pulled away, leaving one hand in his. Eddie rubbed his head.

“What happened? I blacked out after you recovered, right?”

“That’s right.” Ophelia nodded, “The Kill Master said you only fainted. Lars and I took you back to camp while Lita stayed behind, negotiating with the Thunderhogs.” She smiled, “They said they wanted to join us and help get rid of Lionwhyte!”

“That’s good.” Eddie nodded back. Ophelia tilted her head.

“But why did you faint? You really scared us.” Eddie flushed. He’d rather her not know, but she knew he was half-demon. He could trust her with this, couldn’t he? He squeezed her hand.

“I- I don’t-” Eddie swallowed, “I don’t like spiders. _At all_.” Ophelia hugged him.

“Well, thank you for braving your fear for me.”

“No prob, Ophs.” She helped him up and together they left the tent.

* * *

When Lionwhyte arrived at the Crushing Pit after hearing of a rebellion, he hadn’t expected one Bouncer to still be alive, if barely. He’d expected them all to be dead. But no, one of them was still alive, it seemed. Maybe the Bouncer could give him details on this ‘rebellion.’ With him was his entourage of Bouncers, but it seemed he didn’t need them after all. While there was only one Bouncer left alive, there were also many loyalists among the miners, trying to patch up the Bouncer. Lionwhyte made his way over.

“Well then.” He looked down upon the Bouncer, microphone-staff in hand, the scarves adorning it drooping in the heat, “What exactly happened here?”

“L-Lionwhyte, sir!” The Bouncer saluted with a wince of pain, “Two intruders came in through the open gates and played music, getting most of the men on their side. They took me down and then went on to free men from the rest of the mines. They even took down Mittens, sir!” Mittens had been one of his top enforcers. These intruders were highly competent, it seemed.

“Did you recognize any of them?”

“I believe one was Lars Halford, sir.”

“Of course.” Lionwhyte growled. He knew it had been foolish to leave Lars alone from experience, but apparently it was biting him in the ass, “And the other one?” Lionwhyte gestured his staff, wanting the Bouncer to get on with it. It tapped against the closest wall and Lionwhyte turned to look at it, seeing a poster up. It was of a dark- and long-haired man, wielding the Separator. The men in the mines didn’t know how to read nor did they know the legends of the land, but they could recognize people. The Bouncer’s eyes widened and he gestured at the poster with a fist.

“It was him, sir! I’m sure of it!” Lionwhyte narrowed his eyes, staring at the poster. They’d only put them up in the mines this morning and already the Son of Succoria had derailed the entire operation in the Crushing Pit.

“I see.” Lionwhyte sighed angrily. He looked around at the remains of the mines and an idea came to him. If Lars and Succoria’s Son were working together and recruiting everyone they could to fight back, then Lionwhyte might as well copy them. He brought his mic to his mouth, _“Men of the mines, this is Lionwhyte. In return for trying to fight off the intruders and the traitors, some of you will be recruited into the Hair Metal Militia to destroy them.”_ He grinned when he heard cheers. He turned to one of his Bouncers, “Stay here and start the recruitment, but don’t take everyone. We need some to stay here to keep up production. Understood?” The Bouncer nodded. And with that, Lionwhyte made his way out of the Crushing Pit. He didn’t wait for the injured Bouncer, he could take care of himself. Lionwhyte could imagine how the Emperor would take this. He grimaced. As much as he didn’t want Doviculus to know, he knew he had no choice. The Emperor would learn the truth either way. And with how fast the rebellion had started up thanks to the Son of Succoria, the faster Doviculus got the letter the better. Lionwhyte took to the air, flapping his hair and leaving his entourage behind. They knew where to go, he had to get back to the Pleasure Tower as soon as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, and this is expressed on the WMG page of TVTropes on Brütal Legend, it's suspected that Eddie might be an arachnephobe. On the TVTropes page it says, "The same guy who walks alone unflinchingly into battle against a superpowered demon that's already murdered two of his friends, hunts down enormous beasts for fun, and thinks nothing of trying to ride firebreathing metal cats, was obviously hesitant to enter the lair of the Metal Queen, not to mention his very obvious shocked reaction to the first mention of Killmaster's flock of giant spiders. Granted, he sucked it up and went in anyway to save Ophelia, but his reluctance here when it didn't appear anywhere else seems to indicate something." This is why Eddie was a mixture of determined and terrified in this chapter.
> 
> I also like to lean towards the idea that Lionwhyte once knew Lars and Lita. I read a BL fic where Lionwhyte (once known as Lionel in the fic) was Lars' lover but that changed before the events of the game, which is where I got the idea. They won't be exes in this fic but I liked the idea.
> 
> If you listen to Lars and Lita argue before you leave for the Lair (it helps if you have subtitles on) You can listen to them argue about how Ophelia's parents were Tear Drinkers, a foreshadowing to what she tells Eddie later in the game, so this was included in the chapter.
> 
> Also, seeing as the women and men were split up differently in the last chapter than in the actual game, Lita knows what Ophelia tried to do at the Razor Fields and helped out unsuccessfully. This is going to make a point in the next mission, once we get to it.
> 
> Another thing is that the reason why there are forces stopping you on the way up Thunderhorn is because the game put them there because it seems insane for Lionwhyte to put them there so quickly. I put a scene in the chapter to show that. That's why there was no resistance when Eddie drove up Thunderhorn the first time.


	6. A Perfect Mess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter helps give a reason to how Mangus suddenly appears in the game and gives him more of a role before he became the Engineer. Also, the Kill Master looks after his men, even when they aren't his anymore.
> 
> Would've had this up yesterday but internet was out. Hope things are good out in the world with you people.

Lita soon returned without the Trike, as the Thunderhogs had wanted to experiment with it a little. Night still surrounded them and the Headbangers were determined to party long into it. Lars was also up, but Ophelia and Lita had gone back to bed after making sure Eddie was okay. They’d all been worried about him, Ophelia the most. It didn’t help that she had been tired from her healing. And Eddie had wanted to ask Lita about how Ophelia had gotten hurt (seeing as Ophelia wouldn’t fucking tell him), but Lita refused. She said she couldn’t and wouldn’t elaborate why. Eddie hated it but he didn’t prod. He’d ask Ophelia in the morning again. As he continued to sit by the fire with a group of Headbangers, one offered him a beer. Eddie was tempted to drink it after the long, hard day, but he didn’t.

“No thanks.” Eddie waved it off, “I’d prefer water right now.”

“Why?”

“I’ve had troubles with beer before. As awesome as it is, I try to limit the drinking to twice a week.” Eddie glanced to the side as he thought back. The Headbanger nodded.

“Well, thanks again for saving us.” He wandered off. Eddie stared down at the lists he was making, mind trying to figure out how to support the troops. Two new types in one day, but at least Kill Master and his men had their own place and way to get food. The Thunderhogs had also agreed to share some of their food until Ironheade could get on its feet. There was no steady supply chain here like they had in his world and so Eddie would have to come up with one. The new guy, Mangus, seemed competent enough to help. He’d been living with the Thunderhogs but wasn’t one (apparently couldn’t play a bass to save his life but Kill Master had allowed him to stay until he could find another place). Once Eddie made sure the supply chain was up and running, he’d put Mangus in charge. He rubbed his face. He could only hope that it wouldn’t take too long. Apparently there was a beer tree around here somewhere where they could get as much beer as they wanted and they had the stream that flowed into the bottom of Bladehenge where they could get their water (after boiling it, of course). But there was no idea where to get a good supply of materials and food. Eddie would have to go out driving tomorrow and actually explore so he could figure things out. They couldn’t just go out hunting every day, could they? He’d seen the anger of urchins and elks himself and besides, there wasn’t a lot of meat on the urchins, anyway. However, they had to get their food someway, right? Lita had said that Kill Master and some of his men would be coming over in the morning to check things out, so maybe Eddie could ask them how they had so much food. A group of fifty men was much smaller than two hundred, but there had to be a way for them to get all that food. Eddie looked up from his musings when Lars sat beside him. He tried to give the leader a nice grin, but it felt flat. Eddie was too tired to try making a genuine one anyway. It didn't help that his fainting spell had drained some of his energy, but he had things to do that couldn't wait. Lars pat his shoulder.

“How goes the planning, Edward?”

“Not too good. We need to talk to the Kill Master and his Thunderhogs in the morning, see how they get their food before I can make a good plan.” Lars nodded. He handed Eddie the leg of something they had in storage. The roadie was beginning to suspect it was Raptor Elk that was the go-to food for everyone and he had to admit, it was pretty tasty. He heated the leg over the fire as he wondered if they could try domesticating the elk enough to farm them like cows. Lars gave a small cough, as if trying to attract his attention and didn't want to really ask. Eddie turned to the blond, eyebrow raised.

“I’ve been wondering about this since we first met.” Lars said, “Why don’t you like to fight? You’re good at it!”

“I know, but I just _don’t_. Never liked it, honestly. I mean, with how I like Heavy Metal, it should be the stereotypical case that I love fighting and blood and guts and death and all of it. But I don’t.”

“Well, Edward, I’m sorry for asking you to fight, but you knew we had no choice, don’t you?”

“Of course I do, Lars.” Eddie nodded, “I’ll keep fighting because I know it’s the right thing to do.” Eddie turned back to the fire pit, “Even if I don’t particularly like it.” Lars pretended not to hear it. Eddie had said it so quietly it wasn’t meant to be heard and Lars respected that.

“Thank you.”

“Thank me once this is all over and done with.” Eddie went back to his lists, munching on the leg sometimes when he happened to think of it.

“Promise me you'll go to bed soon?” Lars hated to admit it, but a lot of what Ironheade needed to survive hinged on Eddie and his capabilities as a roadie. Having him tired wouldn't do anyone any good.

“In a minute.” Eddie murmured. His eyes stayed glued to the lists, charcoal pencil in hand. Lars sighed.

“You're as stubborn as Ophelia.”

“If you say so.” Lars left him alone after that, but not before informing some of the Headbangers to make sure that Eddie got to bed eventually. He was sure that Eddie would stay up all night if they weren't careful. He then returned to his tent.

* * *

When Lars got up, the sun was barely cresting over the horizon and the snores of the troops filled the camp. He smiled. He always loved this time of morning. He ventured to the giant sword. There were no steps but he loved climbing it to the top and watching the sunset/sunrise. The girls were always sure he'd get hurt but he knew he was fine. He was careful and the height of it never bothered him. It was also a great lookout point. Once he was at the top, he sat on the hilt and looked out over the land. Thunderhorn and Battersmith could be seen in the distance, as well as the volcano above the Screaming Wall and the Razor Fields. Behind him was the road out to the Temple of Ormagöden, or what was left of it. He could also see Mt. Rockmore and its ugly effigies of Lionwhyte. So much seemed calm but he knew that things were changing and a storm would come in their wake. He father had shared that wisdom with him before his death.

 _“Any type of change always has the makings of a storm. Be careful what the storm brings with it.”_ That had been Richard's advice. Richard and Vera Halford. Lars missed them so much. He shook his head. As much as he wanted to dwell on the past, there was no use in it. Already some of the troops were waking up. He knew Eddie was in charge of getting them supplies, but Lars knew that it was time to orchestrate patrols, for Lionwhyte would be on their tail soon enough. He climbed down and joined his men for breakfast. As he ate with them, Lars asked some of the Headbangers to join him in his tent to set up patrols. With his being the biggest of the main four in the lowest section of Bladehenge, it would be hard to miss. He quickly returned to his tent after that. It was rare that he interacted with others in the early hours of the morning but he needed to let his men know that they had a capable and confident leader, first one up in the morning and ready for the day. As he waited for the new troops to arrive, he ate the rest of his breakfast in his tent and checked the mirror to see if he needed to trim himself. When he was ready, he took one of the tables from outside the tent and brought it in, laying his map of the land across it. They might need to create a tactics tent to do this in later, but for now, his tent would do. Lars set to work planning out the patrol routes as he waited on the Headbangers. He looked up when he heard the tent flap swish, but it wasn't any of the men he knew. He was a lot less muscled than any of the men from the mines and had a similar build to the Thunderhogs, but he lacked their short hair and air of indifference. But Lars knew he'd seen the man recently.

“Mangus, right? You're the one from Thunderhorn.” Lars said, trying to remember if he was right in his assumption. The man nodded.

“Yes sir. I was just wondering if there was anything I could do. I know it's early and stuff, but I'd like to help with the patrols.” Lars smiled.

“How good are you with numbers?”

“Uh, pretty good. Why?”

“I think I'll need help keeping up with the patrols.” Lars gestured for Mangus to come closer. The displaced man hesitantly came closer and hovered over his shoulder as Lars explained about the patrols. While Mangus hadn't been able to become a Thunderhog, he was eager to learn and help. Lars supported that. His gift with numbers might also ease the burden on Eddie and make it easier for the roadie to manage the army.

“It looks to me like you might want rotating patrols on the main pathways.” Mangus said, pointing out the road around Thunderhorn and to Battersmith, “Keep them circulating there because those are the most likely paths Lionwhyte may take.”

“How many patrols should we put out?”

“Depends on how much ground they can cover, but I'd say at least three or four patrols. Send them out one at a time in intervals and the route will be mostly covered.”

“Good idea, Mangus.” Lars could understand the logic of that, even if he didn't get the jargon. He noted it down on the side of the map. They continued to work on the logistics of the patrols until the Headbangers finally came marching in.

* * *

Eddie startled awake from a nightmare. He rubbed his eyes, not really remembering it. He _did_ remember the Headbangers making sure he got to bed, though. Likely Lars' work but he appreciated it. Eddie had a bad habit of staying up when he shouldn't. It had gotten him left behind at a few stops on tour before. As it was, he'd slept in his clothes and so didn't take much time to get ready. The comb Lita had given him went through his hair easily, but he'd need to take a bath soon. Did they even _have_ bathtubs here? Showers, maybe? Eddie hoped so. He ran a hand over his chin, checking the stubble, but it seemed to be fine for the day. He stepped out of the tent and blinked at the rising sun. It was still morning and the sun was now cresting over the edge of Bladehenge, lighting up the sky in light blue. Eddie splashed his face with water from the stream to wake himself up before he made his way to the top. He'd get breakfast, do a check of how much food was left, and then see if the Thunderhogs had come by yet. On his way to the storage tent, he encountered Ophelia.

“You're finally up.” she commented, “Lars said you stayed up late last night. Were you partying?”

“Not exactly.” Ophelia joined him as he moved to the tent to grab his breakfast, “What's been going on since you got up?”

“Well, with the help of Mangus, Lars has got patrols going.”

“Have the Thunderhogs come by yet?”

“No.” Ophelia shook her head as Eddie grabbed something vaguely resembling a Steel-Quilled Urchin but without the quills and fur, “Lita doesn't think they're coming. The Kill Master likes staying alone for a reason.”

“I think they'll come.” Eddie assured, “But what the hell is this?”

“Urchin.”

“I thought they exploded upon death?”

“Most do, but if you're lucky, you can kill one without it blowing up. The quills make great blades for knives.”

“Huh.” Eddie stared at it, then shrugged, “With our supply dwindling, this'll have to do.” He pulled off one of the small legs and bit into it. It tasted like chicken.

“Lita's taken some of the Headbangers out on a hunting run.” Ophelia added, “Until you can start up this 'supply chain' you keep talking about, it's our best way to get food.”

“Good idea. Could you please let me know when they get back? I need to make an inventory of the foodstuffs after they put in their kills.”

“Got it.” Ophelia nodded. They moved through the camp quietly. When Eddie was finished with the urchin, he punted the remains outside Bladehenge's walls. Ophelia commented, “Nice.”

“Thanks.” They continued walking. Eddie asked, “So, about yesterday... What happened?”

“What do you mean?” Ophelia's arms were crossed. She was becoming defensive.

“How did you get hurt? Lita wouldn't tell me what happened yesterday.” Ophelia looked surprised at that, but shook her head.

“We spied on Lionwhyte and almost got caught. That's it.”

“Bullshit.” Eddie said, “Please tell me the truth. You almost _died_ , Ophelia. I had to fucking fight the Metal Queen herself to save you.” The woman was silent. Eddie sighed, “I'll let it go this time. But whatever happened that almost got you killed, don't do it again, okay?”

“I won't.” said Ophelia, but the roadie could tell it was a lie. Before he could call her out on it again, there was a roar of familiarity in the distance. Ophelia readied her swords, startled, but Eddie told her to lower them. He had a grin on his face.

“Sounds like the Thunderhogs really are riding some hogs now.” he said. They headed to the northern entrance and watched as the Kill Master drove up, some of his men in tow. They were driving vehicles similar to the Trike, except there were more of those strange speaker-beds situated in the back. Their commotion also drew out other parts of Ironheade, including Lars and Mangus. Eddie clapped.

“Nice wheels! Is that why you wanted the Trike?” he asked, “You make that badass heal mobile yourself?”

“O' course.” Kill Master nodded. He revved the bike and flames spit out of the exhaust pipes, “Found some similar parts near Thunderhorn and made some of our own.”

“Awesome.” Eddie nodded in appreciation. After the Thunderhogs dismounted their bikes, Eddie began to check them out, make sure they were in working order. Since he was the only one that had any knowledge of vehicles here, it was a good idea to let him look. Kill Master, usually one to keep to himself, spotted Mangus off to the side. Originally the stray had tried to join the Thunderhogs, but since he couldn't play bass, he couldn't join. However, with Lionwhyte on the loose, KM had taken pity on Mangus and allowed him to stay. He moved to the man's side silently, but he knew that Mangus knew he was there. Mangus may have scared easily, but he'd gotten used to the Kill Master's presence after a couple of months, and it had been a few years since Mangus had tried joining them.

“How're Ironheade treating you, Mangus?” Kill Master asked.

“Really good, sir. I'm even helping with the patrols!” KM smiled.

“That's good, lad.” KM wouldn't admit it, but the displaced man had found a way into the older man's heart and so he was glad to see that Mangus was doing well in Ironheade. He'd been surprised when Mangus had accompanied Lita back to Ironheade, saying that he wanted to try being useful and helping out since he couldn't do much on Thunderhorn, and so Kill Master had let him go. A day had passed but Mangus looked to have been the happiest he had since trying to join the Thunderhogs. KM went on, “Just know that, if you wanna come back to Thunderhorn, you gotta try playing a bass again.”

“KM, sir, you _know_ I'm trash at that!”

“Doesn't mean you can't get better. If you can help these guys with their patrols, you can try bass again.” Mangus groaned. Kill Master went on, “You give up too easily.”

“Just like the others.” Eddie suddenly said. He shook his head, “The bikes look good to go. Think you can ride them into a fight and heal from there?”

“We could give it a try.” said one of the Thunderhogs, “With a little practice.”

“We're not marchin' off to war anytime soon, so I think you'll have plenty of time to practice.” Eddie said. He turned, “Kill Master, before you guys leave, I wanted to ask about you're able to get all your food and stuff.”

“Really?” KM raised an eyebrow, “We don't have much.”

“Maybe, but you're able to keep it coming in. I wanna ask how you do it.”

“Feeding fifty men is different than the forces you've got here.” Kill Master crossed his arms, “But what we do is just raid some of Lionwhyte's caravans. We don't hurt 'em, just stun 'em and grab what we need. That's it.” That wasn't what Eddie had been expecting, but he nodded anyway.

“Well, thanks. Maybe we can set up some training regiments with your guys and ours for when we do go to war.”

“We'll see.” Kill Master and the Thunderhogs returned to their bikes. They revved the vehicles before taking off.

“Don't call us, we'll call you!” The roadie shouted after them.

“What do you mean by that?” Lars asked.

“It's nothing. Just a phrase from my time.” Eddie shook his head, “At least I've got an idea now of how to go about things. Mangus, meet me in my tent.” The man saluted.

“Yes sir!” He left for Eddie's tent and Lars soon returned to his own, leaving Ophelia and Eddie alone once again. Ophelia glanced at Eddie when he didn't move to follow Mangus. He shifted on his feet, nervous.

“What is it?” she asked. He sighed.

“Listen. I kinda wanted to ask about the kiss we had.” Eddie began, “What was that? You seem so attached to Lars here. Was that just a 'thank you' kiss? Because I would've saved you without it.” Ophelia's arms were crossed again as she seemed to fold in on herself.

“Lars is like a brother to me, Eddie. I don't see him like that. As for the kiss...” She gave a sigh, “I don't know. I mean, it wasn't just a heat of the moment thing, but- I just don't know, okay?” Eddie felt hurt but he nodded.

“Yeah, got it.” His hands rested in his pockets, thumbs poking out. He lowered his voice, “Also, in the mines, I saw something. There were posters of me.”

“Already?” Ophelia's eyes widened. Eddie nodded again.

“You asked me to keep this a secret and I am, but what are we gonna do when they start asking? More posters are gonna pop up and even if these guys can't read, they can recognize a face. They'll ask why I'm on the posters.”

“You can tell them that it's a reward for you, which is partially true, right?”

“Yeah, but I don't like this. Who else can read here?”

“Lars, Lita, and I can all read.” Ophelia said, “The Kill Master definitely can and he's likely passed that onto his men, but I don't know if any of the Headbangers can.” She put a hand on his shoulder, “As long as the posters don't mention what you are or give any hints to it, all they'll think of it as is that it's a wanted poster. That's no different from the ones that might pop up involving me, Lita, or Lars.”

“But you're not the ones the Emperor is specifically after.” Eddie grumbled, “I'll do my best, Ophelia. I can't promise anything but I hope they'll trust my words.” He shrugged off her hand and moved back into Bladehenge.

* * *

Eddie's tent, being smaller than Lars', forced Mangus and Eddie to sit on the furs that made up the roadie's bed. The tent flap was open, providing light as Eddie looked over his lists from last night of what they needed and where to possibly get it. So far, it seemed hunting parties among the various patrols were their best bet in making a supply chain for the time being.

“Um, sir?” Eddie glanced up from his papers.

“Just call me Eddie, Mangus. What is it?” The other man fiddled with his hands.

“Well, uh, I was just wondering why you chose me to help you.” Mangus said, “I'm good with numbers and stuff, but I never amounted to much.”

“You will _always_ amount to something, Mangus. I heard how you helped Lars just this morning in organizing the patrols. Your gift with numbers is really useful for what we're gonna be doing in this army.” Eddie passed one of his lists to the other man, “Look at these. Since we're gonna have tons of people to feed and provide for, we need to start up a supply chain to get all that stuff in. For now the hunting parties will suffice with the food, but we're gonna need to find a sustainable resource if we're gonna survive out here. And once we start up the supply chain, I'm gonna put you in charge of it.”

“M-me?!” Mangus stammered, “But I'm not useful!”

“You are.” Eddie tapped his head, “You know numbers better than most people in Ironheade. They all know how to fight, but they don't know how to organize. That's where we come in. I get things to help out Ironheade, you keep track of the numbers. You got that?”

“Y-yes si- yes, Eddie.”

“Good. Now, what are your thoughts on rounding up some Raptor Elk and using them for farming?”


	7. Walking Beartraps: A Guide to Hunting Tollusks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'know how, sometimes, you start to associate certain music with certain things you experience? Well, during my first playthrough of the game, I was listening to All Time Low's new album Wake Up, Sunshine and it's consequently become synonymous with Brütal Legend for me. Yeah, don't ask.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys like this new chapter!

Mangus' ability to work with numbers was a godsend. Once the stray knew what Eddie was asking of him, he set about gathering the inventory of the storage tent and was able to change it on the fly with ease after Lita returned with more food. Mangus even set up a sheet that he wanted to use where people would sign out on what food they were taking each day so he could get some statistics, but Eddie reeled him in.

“Let's save that for later right now.” Eddie had said, “It might be a bit too much for these guys at the moment, but I like the idea.” Mangus had agreed to it. They'd taken their findings to Lars about sending out hunting parties twice a day and seeing if they couldn't find any Raptor Elk to domesticate (Eddie had to explain the word to both of them and the roadie was somewhat shocked when he found out that they didn't know how to farm). With their food problem dealt with they could also focus on sending out men to look for supplies to build more tents and possibly expand operations into the ground. That first night, only 3/4ths of the Headbangers were able to set up tents, but there had been enough furs for everyone, so no one had frozen or slept particularly uncomfortably. It was astonishing that such a small tent held so much, but Eddie wasn’t complaining. They were lucky it hadn't rained that night, but they might not be so lucky tonight. From what he’d been told, the weather around here could change in a flash and so they had to be ready for it.

“Where can we find the materials for the tents?” Eddie asked as he, Mangus, and Lars gathered in the leader's tent.

“Most of what we used for them was already in Bladehenge, but if we need more supplies,” Lars pointed to the area of the Metal Queen's Lair, “There are dozens of bones here from the spiders' leftovers we can use for lining and we can kill Tollusks for their hides for the tents. However, it'll be hard just to take one down, let alone go near the lair.” Eddie shivered as he remembered said lair.

“Then I'll go get the Tollusk hides.” Eddie offered, “Maybe send a hunting party to grab some of the bones near the lair?”

“Are you crazy?! Tollusks are tough and will kill anything in sight!” Mangus protested.

“Maybe so, but they're the only things around that have the amount of hide we need for the tents.” Lars said, “Be careful Edward.”

“Don't worry about me. I'll go out right now and bring back one of those things. Lita said that their blood makes your version of coffee, right? So that'll also be a plus.” After instructing Mangus so see about organizing the hunting parties and supply scavengers, Eddie readied the Druid Plow and left, but not before grabbing some chains and double-checking on what a Tollusk _was_.

“Oh, you'll know one when you see it.” Mangus said, “They've got metal traps for heads and love to hunt the urchins. If you're afraid you can't find 'em, head towards Battersmith. There are tons of urchins there, so there should be plenty of Tollusks, too.” And so the roadie took Mangus' advice. In the Druid Plow, it took the same amount of time to reach Battersmith as it had in reaching Thunderhorn. The desert ground was covered in rocks and debris with a huge gateway opposite the abandoned highway. The anvil with eyes watched over it all and made Eddie shiver. He felt like he was being watched. That was a feeling he'd never grown to like and likely added onto his decision to become a roadie instead of someone in the spotlight. As it was, he stood on the back of the Druid Plow, looking around for a Tollusk. He didn't have to look far. A hulking beast was napping nearby and the sun gleamed off its metallic head. Eddie gulped. It didn't look easy to take down, but he'd promised... He took out Clementine.

“Let's hope this works.” he murmured to himself. While it usually only took a few shocks to take down a Steel-Quilled Urchin or a Raptor Elk, he doubted that would best a Tollusk. It would be good if he kept his distance. First he played a fire chord and lit it up from below. All that did was wake the Tollusk and make it growl. The fire couldn't catch on it too well and so only singed the beast's belly. Eddie said, “ _Fuck_.” and took off running, the Tollusk right on his heels. It screeched after him, roaring in anger. Eddie tried to shock it into a stunned state, but it barely slowed the Tollusk. The roadie murmured, “It’s a wonder how you don’t have a heart attack from all that lightning going through you...” Eddie continued to keep his distance and attacked the Tollusk with lightning and fire when Clementine wasn't too hot and eventually he finally got the thing to stagger and fall. Eddie panted.

“If this is what Tollusk hunting is like, I wish I hadn't signed up.” he groaned. He looked around for the Druid Plow before realizing he'd ran across Battersmith while trying to deal with the beast. He couldn't see it anywhere. Eddie tried to lift the dead Tollusk, but it was no use. He could lift it, but there was no way he could carry it all the way back to Bladehenge on his own. He needed the Druid Plow and so played the summoning solo for it. It sped out of nowhere to his side and he took the chains out of the passenger seat. He lifted the Tollusk again and secured it to the back of the Druid Plow, wincing at the alarming creak that sounded from the car with the added weight. He experimentally kicked it and it gave the alarming creak again, “Well, fuck. You'll break apart before we're halfway to Bladehenge unless I can get you reinforced.” He got in the car, “Not like we have a choice, though.” He started it up. While it ran fine at first, when Eddie put the Druid Plow in gear and made it go forward, it sputtered for a moment before it moved, dealing with the huge amount of weight on its backside. It couldn't pick up speed like this and so they were more or less sitting ducks. Eddie stopped the car and rubbed his face.

“Fuck.” he said again. When he looked up, he spotted some of the red flowers that he'd seen dotted around the Tab Slabs and at the Temple. Usually they indicated secrets to be discovered and they were growing around what seemed to be huge lumps of metal. Eddie got out. It was a long shot, but maybe this secret could lead to something that would reinforce the Druid Plow? After all, the car was a Titan invention and what kind of inventors would they be if they didn't make any upgrades for the thing? Eddie went over and played the solo (which he was beginning to dub the 'Relic Raiser') and had to move back when the ground shook. Lifting out of it was a skull with a biker's helmet and goggles, metal wings unfolding from its sides, and under it was what looked like a garage door. Maybe this was the lucky break he'd been looking for. As soon as the building had stopped moving, Eddie returned to the Druid Plow and drove it closer. Automatically the door moved up for him to enter. He inched the vehicle inside and could see a long, winding cavern before him, lit only by glowing markings in the walls. It had a steep downhill curve and, if they weren't able to stop, then the car would either smash into something or fall. Eddie wasn't looking forward to it, but the relic was designed like a garage. He didn't have much of a choice. Muttering, “Let's hope the brakes don't give out,” Eddie drove down the slope. Immediately the extra weight of the Tollusk caused the car to pick up speed and he had to swerve to avoid all the rocks in his path that stuck out from all sides of the tunnel. Eventually the car came to a long slope with a steep drop and he put on the brakes. Said brakes squealed like crazy the whole way down, but he was able to get it to stop feet before the drop. Eddie sighed in relief. Now that they were out of danger, he could take a look around. It was blistering hot in here, hotter than the mines, but not too hot for Eddie weirdly. It was hazy with heat and a few fumes here, where he could see the vague shapes of giants pounding away at their anvils. Yeah, he was definitely in Titan territory now. He jumped when the sound of haunting laughter filled the air and turned around. Out of the lava below came a lump of it that solidified into a human shape before it crumbled apart, revealing someone that Eddie hadn't expected to see.

“Ozzy?!” he exclaimed.

“Sorry, but I think you've got the wrong person.” said the man. He sure looked and sounded like Ozzy, though. Come to think of it, the Kill Master had also looked and sounded vaguely familiar. Eddie was confused to hell about it.

“But if you're _not_ Ozzy, who the hell are you?”

“Not important.” Not-Ozzy waved him off and he moved closer to look at the car, “Looks like you figured out the instructions okay. But why the hell do you have that beast attached to the back?”

“Long story.” said Eddie.

“With those supports, you're lucky you didn't fall into the lava. The Deuce isn't made for lugging things around, y'know.”

“The Deuce?” Eddie asked. He was sure Not-Ozzy was rolling his eyes behind those tinted lenses.

“What else would you name it? You've also got some demon flesh on your bumper.” Not-Ozzy pointed to the area as he moved around to the back of the car, “But that's the way the world is today, I'm afraid.”

“But then who are you?”

“Oh, me? Oh, I’m nobody. I’m just the Guardian of Metal.”

“That’s...cool.” Eddie wasn’t sure what the title was supposed to mean, “What are you doing down here? Do you think you could help me fight demons and stuff?”

“Nah.” The Guardian suddenly appeared behind Eddie, making the man jump, “I’m not a fighter, I’m more of a, what shall we say, a keep of timeless secrets, that’s all. Prove yourself worthy, and maybe I’ll share some with you.”

“How would I prove myself worthy?” Eddie asked, moving away a little, wanting personal space.

“I think you’ve already started it with the Deuce. Did you know that this world was once ruled by an ancient race, called the Titans? Now they were something!” Eddie nodded. The Guardian went on, “They took every part of that old firebeast. They took his blood, his fire, his steel flesh… They even took his scream! They used all that stuff to make this car and a mission other things!” The Guardian tugged Eddie into a side hug, “Including music. Fuckin’ beautiful music, man.” Much to Eddie’s relief, the Guardian let him go and moved away, “And when they rose to the heavens and became gods, they left instructions behind. How to make cars, music, the whole deal. D’you think anybody noticed?”

“Well, judging by the way no one here knows about cars-” Eddie began. He leaned back when the Guardian of Metal got in his face.

“No! They didn’t!” The Guardian leaned away, “Bunch of wankers! No one figured out any of it! Until you came along, they were stuck in the stone age!” The Guardian brought a hand to his chin in thought, “So you must be somewhat worthy of the gods’ favor, I suppose. So listen,” Eddie jumped again when the Guardian suddenly appeared at his side a second time, “If you something that pleases the gods, they might reward you...with a Fire Tribute.” The Guardian took out a lighter and Eddie quickly searched his pockets for his own. It was gone. The Guardian handed his lighter back, “When they’ve paid you enough tributes, come see me; I’ll share some more secrets of Metal with you.”

“So you're a shopkeeper.” Eddie surmised. The Guardian rolled his eyes again.

“Essentially.” he said, “Bring me Fire Tributes and I'll upgrade your car. Fair trade.”

“Then what do I need to pay to get this thing back on the road?” Eddie jerked his thumb at the Deuce. The Guardian clapped his hands. The car was covered in a soft yellow glow, similar to the healing light Eddie had witnessed the day before. Immediately the Deuce adjusted itself and the back end was in the air again.

“There.” said the Guardian, “Supports strong enough to help you lug this dead weight around, free of charge.”

“Thanks, Guardian of Metal.” Eddie experimentally kicked the side of the car. While there was a small creak, it didn't sound alarming like before. Still, best to get rid of the Tollusk as soon as possible.

“Anything else you need? Car upgrades aren't the only things we sell here.” Eddie considered it.

“Got any new strings for a guitar?”

* * *

Eddie tapped his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of _Dawn of Battle_ by Manowar. Just before he left, as another gift, the Guardian had touched the dashboard and a mouth had opened up, spilling music from its recesses. On the sides were what looked like eyes but on closer inspection, Eddie had determined they were dials, like for a radio. Because he’d managed to return the Deuce to the place of its creation through a Motor Forge (the strange building that had allowed him access to this heated place), the Titans had awarded him the Mouth of Metal. The Guardian had also said that, as he kept exploring, he’d find all kinds of secrets that would not only earn him Fire Tributes but new songs for the Mouth or small upgrades. Of course, being the secret keeper he was, the Guardian wouldn’t elaborate more. However, it gave Eddie an idea of what he could be looking for while driving. He’d had enough Fire Tributes already to start buying things and so had given upgrades to his guitar, the Separator, and even learned some new tricks to use with his weapons. It made him feel safer in this place, at least. After grabbing a few more upgrades, he’d said goodbye to the Guardian and zoomed out of the Motor Forge, the Tollusk still strapped to the back of the Deuce. He glanced at the tour book resting in the passenger seat. He’d written down all the new tricks in it as well as some of the secrets the Guardian had said to watch out for in the land, such as Buried Metal and Bound Serpents. Besides keeping Ironheade running, he’d have a lot to look for on his explorations. As it was, he turned and started the drive back to Bladehenge. With the reinforcements, the Tollusk’s weight was nothing on the car and so he didn’t have to worry about the Deuce being damaged. Eddie had the car stop at the northern entrance upon his arrival and began unloading the Tollusk carcass.

“Wow. You really did it.” It was Lita, having come out to investigate.

“Yep.” Eddie grunted, “Now where do you want this sack of shit? Gotta move it before my back gives out.”

“Right. Put it by the storage tent.” Eddie did so. He rubbed his back as she went on, “We’ll skin it later. I’m surprised you survived.”

“I could tell.” he quipped. Lita frowned.

“Your weapons are different.” Eddie pulled them out, a little surprised that she’d noticed.

“I came across a Motor Forge.” he explained, “Apparently it’s a gateway to the place where the Titans created all their stuff and the guy guarding it, the Guardian of Metal, can give me upgrades.” He hefted the Separator, “It’s still the same axe, just with the Blade of Ormagöden instead. As for my guitar, it’s got some new Super Shaker strings. Apparently they’re supposed to make my Earthshaker attack more powerful.”

“Interesting.” Lita was thoughtful, “Can these upgrades be given to anyone?”

“I don’t think so.” Eddie shook his head as he put the weapons back.

“Then take care with these upgrades, Edward.” She narrowed her eyes, “This makes you a very dangerous man.” Lita turned and left.

“What’s her problem?” Eddie murmured to himself. He went back to the Deuce to go looking for more Tollusks. While he was making runs across the continent, Eddie noted the different things he’d find, such as how many of the plants either sprouted instruments or car parts. They could easily be fashioned into new transport vehicles like the Trike and the Deuce (likely what the Thunderhogs had done to make more vehicles), but what about a power source? The Deuce hadn’t needed one in the instructions and he could’ve been lucky with the Trike, but what if vehicles here didn’t need any power because they made their own? Ormagöden’s scream gave music its magic and power here, so what if the roar of the engines themselves gave the vehicles their energy source? He’d have to experiment with the thought when he returned. He was able to kill five more Tollusks before night fell and for now, it would have to be enough. While he had no idea how to skin an animal, let alone a Tollusk, Lita clearly did. Eddie found her instructing some of the Headbangers how to skin it after his third trip back. He joined in after he’d returned the fifth time. Might as well learn a useful skill when he could. By the time they’d finished skinning the five Tollusks, a lot of cloth was stained with blood. Eddie sighed. Another task he needed to add to the lists: washing blood out of clothes. He knew it to be a fairly easy task with the right materials, but there was no hydrogen peroxide or laundry detergent here. He’d have to improvise, starting now. He wasn’t getting his clothes stained, thank you very much.

Eddie grabbed an empty bucket and filled it with cold water from the stream before he headed to his tent, grabbing a stool along the way. He took off his vest first, stripping it of its pins carefully before soaking it in the bucket. As it soaked, he took off his shirt and pants. He wasn’t taking off his underwear unless he had no choice, however. Thankfully, since it had happened less than an hour ago, the blood mostly came out of the vest easily. There were a few dark patches, but since the vest was black, he didn’t have much to worry about. He switched out the vest with his shirt and laid the vest on the stool to dry. He hoped there was enough cold water in the bucket left to be able to soak out his jeans, but he doubted it. He’d have to pour out the bucket and get some more water, but he hoped no one would see him. Venturing out in his underwear wasn’t something he felt comfortable with. As he let his shirt soak, he wondered if he could ask the girls for tips. They must’ve had periods like every other girl, so they must’ve also known how to get blood out of clothing, right? He’d have to ask them about it in the morning as discreetly as possible. Eddie’s face flushed with the idea of asking Lita and Ophelia about it, but what choice did he have? Unless they wanted blood-stained clothes or repeatedly replacing the old ones, they needed to find a way to wash the blood out easily. Once he was sure his shirt was mostly clean, he took it out of the bucket and let it join the vest in drying. Quickly as possible, Eddie poured the red water outside his tent before grabbing some new water from the stream. As soon as he’d returned to his tent, he double-checked his jean pockets for anything that needed to stay out of the water before dunking in the pants. He then checked the vest and shirt, knowing they weren’t dry but wishing they were. He turned to his pins and checked that he still had every one as he waited. He needed to get a pouch or something to put these in so he wouldn’t lose them when they were off his vest.

“Eddie?” He blushed. It was Ophelia. He stuck his head out so she wouldn’t have to come in.

“Hey, Ophelia. What do you need?”

“Nothing, just about to go on a run. Wanted someone to know where I was going.” Eddie frowned.

“Why now? It’s dark.” A thought came to him, “Does this have to do with what nearly killed you?”

“No.” Ophelia answered too quickly for his liking, shaking her head.

“Ophelia, you can’t.” He stood up straighter. He couldn’t let her leave, not if she got hurt again. In the darkness, her face suddenly got darker and he could see the rosy red on her cheeks.

“Are you...in your _underwear_?” Eddie blushed again.

“You caught me off-guard. I was just trying to wash the Tollusk blood out of my clothes.”

“I see. If you need help getting the blood out, there’s an old trick I’ve learned that I can share with you.”

“I’ll only accept it if you promise me you’ll stay in Bladehenge tonight.”

“I can’t.”

“Then I guess I’ll be sitting around in my underwear tonight.” Ophelia sighed.

“You’re an idiot.” She turned away. For all the embarrassment it may earn him, Eddie prepared to leave the safety of the tent and go after her.

“Ophelia.” he said, “I respect that you won’t tell anyone what happened and that Lita’s keeping the secret, but if you willingly put yourself back in danger then I’ll come after you and drag you kicking and screaming back here, whether you like it or not.” This caused the woman to pause.

“In your underwear?”

“Even in my underwear. Embarrassment isn’t worth letting you get hurt again.”

“Eddie…” Ophelia turned back to him. She looked a little less guarded and a little more pitiful for him. Her shoulders dropped, “Fine, if just to keep you from embarrassing yourself.”

“Thank you.” Eddie nodded. They stood there in awkward silence for a few more moments. Eddie shifted in place, “I think I’ll go back to drying my clothes, if you don’t mind. You can show me your secret to getting the blood out later.”

“It’s this.” Before he could duck back into the tent, she threw a bottle to him. Eddie caught it with ease and glanced at her.

“What do you mean?”

“The beer, it can get out bloodstains.” Eddie’s jaw dropped.

“You’re _kidding_. The beer can get it out?!”

“It’s always worked for me and Lita.” Ophelia blushed again, “It’s weird, I guess, but it works.”

“Thanks. Maybe share the secret with the Headbangers so they can get their clothes washed?” Eddie suggested.

“Will do.” Ophelia nodded. He watched her walk away before he returned to his tent. By this time he pulled out his pants and popped the top off the bottle. Most of the blood was already gone after soaking in the water so quickly after the fact, but it would be helpful to get it all out. Eddie held the jeans by the bloodstained patch and hefted the bottle.

“Hope it’s not as strong as Clorox because I don’t need white spots in these jeans.” he murmured, then poured the beer on the stain. Immediately the drink began to eat away and the barely-there stain, leaving the color and cloth alone and only going for the blood. In minutes the stain was gone. Eddie whistled, “Fucking _hell_. Wish we had some of this stuff in my world.” He dunked the pants back in the water to wash the beer off and moved the pour the remaining drink on the stains on his shirt and vest. He just wished he knew why Ophelia had wanted to leave that night. She was stubborn for sure, did she want to finish the job she’d started? But why? It had almost gotten her killed! If only she’d tell him _what_ she’d been doing…


	8. Of Tears, Flying Monkeys, and Car-Trashing Serpents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took a while to do this chapter, but I finally managed to finish it and here it is. I'm sorry if things are changed around a bit in how they were supposed to be known compared to the game, but I think it fits better this way. And next chapter is (I hope) 'To the Slaughter.'
> 
> Also, first appearance of Jack the Lift-Op! I read a fic once where they were friends and Jack convinced Mangus to try the Death Rack. I think their friendship should also be something to be addressed.

The next morning, with his clothes now washed and clean and dry, Eddie slipped them on. He clipped his pins back on the vest and felt his chin. It was time for another shave. He’d have to go see Lars anyway for an idea of what should be done that day, this helped give him an excuse. But as he looked around Bladehenge on his way, there was no sign of Ophelia. He knew she could be elsewhere, yet he was afraid she’d try and go out and do what she was doing previously. When he asked the few people he passed, they hadn’t seen her. Was she still sleeping, perhaps? Eddie would have to trust that she was okay and nearby, right?

“Morning, Edward.” greeted Lars as Eddie came into the tent, “Do you need to shave?”

“Yeah.” Lars handed him the knife. As Eddie started shaving in the reflection of the shield, Lars went on, “I know the system you’re trying to set up is in the early stages, but I think it shows promise. Thank you for helping us.”

“No problem, Lars.” Eddie brushed a hand over his chin. He knew better than to speak while shaving, “We’ve still got a long way to go, but I think it’s going well. One of the next steps would be to help everyone start reading, I think.”

“Really? Why?” This had Lars taken by surprise.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Eddie glanced at him, “Literacy is a huge advantage for us, even if it doesn’t seem like it. _‘The more you know, the less your enemy knows.’_ I think that’s a quote from something. Anyway, the point is that the more we know, the less our enemies can use against us. So, if we know how to read, then they can’t try to fool us with misleading pictures if we can read what’s there. Do you get it?” Eddie knew that bringing up the subject could lead to him getting discovered sooner, but it was a good idea to teach the Headbangers how to read. There wasn’t a person he knew who didn’t know how to read, at least for the most part. It didn’t help that most of them _hated_ reading as kids and still did now. Lars gave a nod.

“I understand. But the only ones I know who can read are myself, Ophelia, Lita, and the Thunderhogs. We were taught by our parents, but the Thunderhogs were taught by the Kill Master, who himself is the oldest man I know. He knows things about the Black Tear Rebellion that can leave you with shivers.”

“The Black Tear Rebellion?” asked Eddie. He’d never heard of this.

“Yes.” Lars looked so sad when mentioning it, “Originally, just as it is now, humans were leading a successful rebellion against the demons. Then some split off to go to the Sea of Black Tears for more power, just to survive. However, the Sea is made of Aetulia’s tears, her grief and sadness of what happened to Ormagöden. Drinking the Sea gives you power, but it also gives you all that sadness. It becomes overwhelming and you can lose your mind it. The group of humans who went to the Sea turned against the rest of the humans and made the rebellion implode. The Kill Master, before he became the Kill Master, was a teenager when it went down. He saw it all and sometimes tells stories of what happened.” Lars shook his head, “I’m determined not to let this one end the same way.” Eddie had been told the creation legend his first night here and knew who Aetulia was. He also remembered what Lita had mentioned when arguing with Lars while Ophelia’s life was in the balance.

“So, the people who went to the Sea, were they called Tear Drinkers?”

“Yes, but how-?”

“I overheard your argument when we were at Thunderhorn.” Eddie went back to staring at his reflection, “Is that why Lita doesn’t like Ophelia? Because she has some relation to the Tear Drinkers?”

“Her parents were Drinkers. But yes, Lita holds a grudge for it and judges Ophelia by her past, not her present. I don’t judge Ophelia for it because she had no control over what happened. That was her parents’ choice, not hers. I trust her completely. I just wish my sister could feel the same.”

“That explains a lot.” Eddie murmured. The dark looks, suspicious glares… “She has trust issues, huh?”

“Quite a few.” Lars confirmed, “Though it’s partially because of our mother. She disappeared when we were young, around the same time as the Black Tear Rebellion. Our father never told us what happened to her and I believe that helped lead to Lita’s distrust.”

“I see.” Eddie handed the knife back, “We’ll have to wait until Ironheade has a steady supply of food, but I guess the next step is asking Kill Master if he minds teaching these guys how to read. That’s gonna be a trip.”

“Yes, convincing him will probably be the hardest part.”

“I was talking about the Headbangers, but I gotta agree with you there.” Eddie moved to the front of the tent, “I’m going back to Tollusk hunting. Wish me luck!” Eddie then ducked out. He grabbed another quill-less urchin on his way past the storage tent, determining to eat on the way. He trusted that Mangus had things under control with the hunting parties, so today he would take some time to explore. He had the map, but that didn’t mean he didn’t know where everything was. Which was why he was going out. He’d also hunt Tollusks on the way, since they still needed materials for tents and the like. But knowing more about Ophelia’s past, of the pasts of the rebellion, it made him uneasy. Not because of what happened, exactly, but how Lars had phrased it. _‘Originally, just as it is now…’_ It felt ominous, like history was going to repeat itself. While he was here, Eddie would make sure that didn’t happen. And maybe, while he was at it, he could help Lita with her trust issues and fix the rift. It was a long shot, but some progress was better than none.

* * *

Doviculus read the letters with a mixture of pleasure and anger. Already the Son of Succoria was making trouble less than a day after his arrival, as Lionwhyte explained. He had led the humans in the mines to a victory and transported them to a safe place. No one in the rebellion had been killed, that was how good the Son of Succoria was. While he was miffed at the loss of labor, Doviculus couldn’t help but be amazed by the hybrid’s quick work. His leadership skills were impressive, even if he had been accompanied by a natural leader for the humans. He was also a good fighter and tactician, if the battle was anything to go by. Doviculus may not have known who the hybrid’s father was, but he could definitely see Succoria in the human. He had her power and battle prowess, yet lacked her viciousness. While he _had_ attacked for self-defense and had the power to back it up, it seemed he lacked the initiative to make the first blow. Typical of humans to back down from a fight. But he still managed to escape the mines with at least two hundred slaves in tow, so he was no slouch. It would be optimum if the Son of Succoria could be recruited into his ranks, but the Emperor doubted it. He had spent time with humans and likely firmly believed in their cause. A joke to be sure, but not for the hybrid. So he would either have to be tricked into joining the demons or, more likely, killed. It made Doviculus wonder, though. If he was here, was Succoria not far behind? And with him being her son, why didn’t she teach him how to be a demon? Why was he even half human in the first place? What had happened in the future to make all of this possible? At the time of her leaving, the demons had all been so sure that the future belonged to them. Now Doviculus wasn’t so sure. But if he could get the transportation device from the hybrid, maybe there was a way to change the future to allow demons to rule, just as they had thought they would. All he had to do was either get Succoria’s Son on the demon side or loot his corpse. Doviculus wasn’t picky about which.

“Trixie!” he called for the Nun. While she was still able to battle, her missing arm made it harder for her to fight, and so she had been delegated to lesser duties, such as taking notes. He had thought about killing her, if to put her out of her misery or punish her for failure, but he knew that she was still valuable. After all, the Son of Succoria had left her alive and she was the only one who knew what he looked like. She had been able to describe a picture for the wanted posters and had given Doviculus an idea of who he was looking for. Succoria’s Son might even care a little about her, since he’d given her mercy. So she was allowed to live for now.

“My lord, what do you need of me?” As always, she hadn’t been far away, waiting in the shadows of the room for his call.

“I want you to take a letter for me and address it to that pesky Lionwhyte.” Trixie nodded. She had a stone slab tucked against her body with her injured arm, covered in parchment, and in her hand she produced a quill. Despite their long claw occupying their first finger, Battle Nuns were surprisingly good at writing things down. Doviculus began to dictate, “ _Lionwhyte, have patrols going if you don’t have them out already. I want Succoria’s Son caught, dead or alive, and brought to me. He is strong and clever, so don’t underestimate him. But if he gets to you first, well, I don’t think I need to tell you what will happen. Your wonderful Emperor, Doviculus._ ”

“All done, sir.” said Trixie.

“Good.” Doviculus stood up from his throne, “I’ll take this to Morse myself.” He took the scroll from her and made his way through the building. His throne, like all thrones before it, had been constructed of the last Emperor’s bones after they had been killed. While unfortunately for him Succoria hadn’t been slain, it was enough to have her old throne in its place. The building around it had been built from a mixture of metal, stone, and the poisonous demon flesh that covered their lands. It had crawled up the metal structure and soon turned the place into its own monster, needing to be fed once in a while but supremely tough against attack. Everywhere you looked was either a disgusting trap or a healthy blemish and neither could be told apart except to the demon eye. Few had tried to storm the stronghold and none had succeeded. There were still battle scars if you looked closely in other parts of the living castle. The only part of the building not covered in flesh were the stone floors, making it easier for them to walk. Doviculus could hear his hooves echo slightly with every step he took, though it was hard to hear with the building absorbing most of the sound while making some of its own. He continued on his way to the Aviary, where the messages were sent out. It was populated with little fuzzy human-like creatures with wings and tails they called Affens, who would take the messages from the castle to elsewhere. Just before he stepped inside, Doviculus looked around for their keeper, a Warfather by the name of Morse. When he spotted the demon, busy trying to convince an Affen to let go of a scroll, the Emperor grinned. Perfect.

“Morse!” Doviculus grinned wider when the Warfather fumbled with the scroll as the Affens took off, howling their weird screams. He got his kicks where he could find them.

“Y-yes sir?” Morse finally got the scroll under control in his hands.

“I need you to send out a letter for me.”

“Yes sir.”

“I want this to go to the wretched Lionwhyte.” Doviculus handed over the scroll, “And get these beasts to quiet down before I decided to make them into hats.”

“Of course!” Morse squeaked and set about trying to get the creatures to calm down. Doviculus turned around and began to whistle as he walked out. He _loved_ messing with the Aviary sometimes.

* * *

His first encounter with a Bound Serpent was also the first time he realized the Deuce, when it was destroyed, could be magically brought back. Not like he tried it immediately, though. Because driving right into a Bound Serpent unexpectedly and flying free from a crushed car is what Eddie wanted to happen. And hitting a tree face-first was also on his list of things to do today. Of course it was. By the time he woke up, his entire body was sore, the Deuce was on fire, the tree he’d hit had barely a dent to its bark, and the Bound Serpent was perfectly undamaged.

“Next time, I’m installing a stronger seatbelt.” he groaned. Not like it had actually helped, having snapped unexpectedly from the impact. Eddie raised a hand to rub his throbbing forehead, “At least I’m not dead.” He struggled to sit up. While his headache got worse for his troubles, at least he didn’t feel sick. Hopefully he didn’t have a concussion. When he saw the crushed and burning Deuce, he said, “I’m in way too much pain to deal with you right now.” and laid down again. Eddie got a up a few minutes later when he felt better and the Deuce had stopped burning. Luckily the fire hadn’t spread beyond the car and he hadn’t had anything special inside it to get damaged. Eddie winced when he saw the carnage and could only hope the Guardian of Metal could somehow fix things. As it was, he managed to push the Deuce away and get a look at what he’d run into. It seemed to be a stone statue of a winged serpent, but was covered in the same leather as what the Coil wore, plus a bright red ball gag on top. He took out his tour book and scoured through it for the Bound Serpent article, as the Guardian had described them.

 _“They’re statues made to honor Ormagöden.”_ The Guardian had explained, _“Each one has a tiny piece of the Beast himself inside it. The Emperor sealed them up so that power wouldn’t get out. But if you free one, it’ll share its power with you, I’m sure.”_

“But how do I free the fucking thing?” Eddie grumbled, “Especially since it just trashed my car?” It was covered in leather, so he reasoned he could cut through it. However, even with the sharp axehead of the Separator, the leather didn’t incur any damage. While that seemed to be in complete violation of common sense, Eddie considered that this wasn’t supposed to be easy. So he tried other tricks he knew, including the magic ones from his guitar. Eventually, his Pyro attack was able to burn through the leather and heat the Serpent enough to where it was able to break free on its own. The leather snapped off and the ball gag popped out with a bang. It made Eddie jump, but he grinned when he was able to see the Serpent in its full glory. He touched the statue and found that, despite the fire seconds ago, it didn’t burn him. It was slightly warm to the touch.

“Wonder how you guys are supposed to help with your power.” Eddie mused. He went back to his tour book to write down how he could free the Serpents, as well as make a list of how many could be left. The Guardian hadn’t told him, but he hoped the mysterious shopkeeper would tell him eventually. As he flipped through it, however, he quickly came across something he hadn’t noticed before. It was a small piece of paper wedged in near the back of the book and scrawled in his mother’s handwriting. How had he not noticed this before?

“Huh.” Eddie took out the piece of paper, “When did Ma get my tour book?” His eyebrows rose higher as he gazed at the paper, “And when did she decide I might need to make my own soap?” He knew his mother worried about him while he was on the road, but he could take care of himself. However, this might be able to prove useful and give him an idea of how to make soap in this place. He’d need to discuss it with the others when he returned. Glancing back at the Deuce he winced. _If_ he ever returned. Maybe if he played the solo, then it would be magically fixed. It was completely possibly in this place, as far as Eddie knew. He hoped it would work. He took out Clementine and moved back to the tree he’d hit, just in case the car exploded or something. He didn’t need shrapnel embedded in his head as well as a possible concussion. But as soon as he played the cummoning solo, the car disappeared. Eddie looked around for it, but there was no sign of the car except where it had burned. He played the solo again. The car appeared out of nowhere, like always, and rolled to his side. It looked brand new, along with the upgrades he’d added. In the driver’s seat was a piece of paper he hadn’t seen before. It certainly hadn’t been there when he decided to get in that morning. He picked it up.

 _‘Next time,’_ it read, _‘leave the car-trashing to the demons. - G’_

“Well, at least I now know this thing can’t die.” Eddie patted the Deuce, “You and I are gonna have a wonderful friendship.” He got inside and started the car. There were no strange sounds and it came alive with no problems. _Through the Fire and Flames_ was even playing on the Mouth of Metal. Eddie grinned. He put the car in gear and steered it back toward Bladehenge. He’d had enough exploring for one day and, hopefully, Ophelia had returned by now. Eddie was certain she’d left the campsite that morning, because she clearly had something she needed to do that she wasn’t going to let go of. He just hoped she was safe.

* * *

It was still about an hour away from sunset when Eddie returned. He briefly wondered about setting up a sundial or something so that they would be able to tell what time it was, then reasoned that there might be no point to it. Teaching people to read was one thing, telling time was another. But as long as he knew what direction the sun was in the sky, he’d be able to get a little accuracy on the time. Working long days during the summer helped prepare him for a scenario like this, he supposed. He just wished he’d had the sense to wear a watch. After unloading the Tollusk he’d managed to kill (six one that day), Eddie began looking for Mangus. He wanted to know how well the man had been able to handle the patrols that day. He found Mangus on top of a scaffold constructed around the base of the giant sword of Bladehenge, accompanied by a Headbanger. Eddie knew from experience that scaffolding was a quick thing to put together and that there had been some used by the Headbangers in the mines, but he hadn’t expected to see some here. Mangus and the Headbanger waved to him.

“Hey, Eddie! Come look at the view!” said Mangus. Eddie looked up, trying to judge how far up they were, then shrugged. It was better than Lars’ free-climbing and safer, that was for sure, allowing other people to be able to search around for invaders besides the leader of Bladehenge. It seemed to go halfway up the sword, taking Eddie several minutes to reach them. Mangus hadn’t been kidding about the view, however.

“Wow. Nice job, guys.” Eddie commented. He could see over the barriers that encircled the camp and the outline of the anvil of Battersmith was visible in the distance.

“You should thank the Headbangers for this.” said Mangus, “They put this thing together just like that!” He snapped his fingers for emphasis. The Headbanger shrugged. He had long blond hair and his eyes were covered by red goggles.

“We always had to construct our own platforms, back in the mines. I guess it’s something we’re good at, besides headbanging.”

“Hmm…” Eddie thought about it for a moment, “What’s your name?”

“Oh! Um, it’s Jack, sir.”

“How fast did you construct this and how safe is it?”

“It’s very safe, sir. It only took us a few minutes to put it together.” said Jack.

“I see.” Eddie nodded, “Then maybe you guys would be able to help us build some defenses for this place. The stone and bone are nice, but I don’t think that’s gonna cut it if demons come charging in.”

“If you want, Mr. Riggs, I could talk to the others and see what ideas we could come up with.”

“Good idea, Jack. And you don’t have to call me that, ‘Eddie’ is fine.”

“U-um, okay. See you later, guys!” Jack quickly fled down the scaffolding. Eddie raised an eyebrow.

“He’s really outgoing, once you get past the stage fright.” Mangus shrugged, “Kinda like me, I guess.”

“How was your day, though?”

“Pretty good. Some of the patrols that went near Battersmith said that they saw some wagons going to and from the Cleave.”

“Cleave?”

“The Cleave of the Impaler.” Mangus pointed to the gate under the anvil, very hard to see from their position, “It’s Lionwhyte’s last defense if we ever manage to get to the gate. Basically, they have these skull towers that shoot harpoons at anything that moves. No one’s made it through alive.”

“So we’ll have to get through that to see Mr. Hair Metal Militia, huh?” Eddie mused. He shook his head, trying to distract himself. There was no need to impose his worries on Mangus just yet. He continued, “So taking care of the patrols gave you no trouble?”

“Nope! I’ve also been doing a count of our tents and people and it looks like we’ve finally got some excess materials.” Mangus pointed down, “With four Headbangers to a tent, it saves a lot of space. But they still take up a majority of the top ring. If we need more troops, we’ll probably have to expand outward to have everyone here. Adding those defenses you mentioned outside the walls is probably a good idea.” Eddie nodded. It was just as he’d feared, but at least they’d beaten any upcoming storm. Now everyone could sleep with a roof over their head for now.

“Then I think it’s just about time to see about training the troops for war.” As much as he wanted them to be literate, Eddie had to make sure the Headbangers could defend themselves, especially if Lionwhyte ever made a rush towards their encampment. Battersmith wasn’t that far away, after all. He mulled things over as he asked, “What are patrols like now? How many do you have going out at a time?”

“Four to a patrol, and we make sure to send four at a time in rotation. There’s the first group that leaves, then the second one leaves about ten minutes later, and so on. We switch it out in the afternoon with four new groups.”

“Pretty good.” Eddie praised, “Do you think you could help set aside some time for them to go on drills?”

“Drills?” Mangus gave him a confused look.

“Combat drills.” Eddie pointed to the fields outside of Bladehenge, “I’d like to have them battle-ready at any time, so having combat drills would help the ones that aren’t patrolling keep in practice.”

“Alright.” Mangus nodded, “I’ll see what I can do. But what would they practice with?”

“I’ll set up some dummies or something.” Eddie took out his tour book to jot down the note. As he wrote the reminder, something occurred to him. He took out the paper left in his book and turned to Mangus, “Just one question: You guys got any soap around here?”

“You _do_ realize we know how to make our own soap, right?” Lita drawled. The men jumped. Neither had heard or seen her climbing the scaffolding.

“Hey, I wasn’t the one who made this piece of paper!” Eddie waved it for emphasis, “My mom stuck it in my tour book.” He handed her the instructions on making soap, “It’s kinda been on my mind that you guys haven’t bathed in days. I mean, I’m not better, especially with the tour schedules I get on, but-”

“We _do_ bathe, but it’s not as important in war-time.” Lita said, “Which this is, remember?”

“Yeah, I get.” Eddie couldn’t help but feel chastised by her words, as if he was a child she was scolding. Lita then left them to their own devices. Eddie knew she had been friendly when he first arrived, so maybe this was what Lita was really like? But still, if they were to work together, he needed her to treat him as an equal, if not something a little better than what was going on now.

“I guess that answers your question, huh?” joked Mangus. He wilted at Eddie’s look, “Sorry, Eddie.”

“Just get back to work, Mangus.” Eddie sighed. He began climbing back down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Affen = German for 'monkeys' (from Google Translate) - I liked the idea that the demons would have Wizard of Oz-esque flying monkeys as messengers. Don't tell me you wouldn't have done the same to poor Morse if you were in Doviculus' hooves. Also, Morse's name is in reference to a way to communicate: Morse Code.
> 
> 2\. Because of how badly the demons tended to treat the humans from what we've inferred from the game, I think that the Headbangers would have to also make their own platforms so they could mine. This is going to play a big part with the Megastage and Merch Booths.
> 
> 3\. From personal experience: Growing up, I came from a family that loved to read but I knew a lot of people who hated it, partially because they had to read for a grade to make it through school, among other things. I don't blame Eddie's friends if they feel the same way. Not everyone likes to read.
> 
> 4\. Since some of the chapters are supposed to focus on Eddie's understanding of the new world he lives in, there are some things that need to be addressed, such as soap and clothing. I'm just trying to give life to a world behind the scenes of what we see in the game.
> 
> 5\. In the last chapter or so, the Thunderhogs mentioned that they get their food and such by raiding Lionwhyte's transports. A glimpse of them are in this chapter, the ones the patrol saw at Battersmith.


End file.
